In an effort to help protect the confidentiality of student information, Computing Services now requires all users to change their network password to comply with new password security guidelines. These guidelines have established minimum length and complexity requirements for passwords used to access University owned computer systems. If you do not change your password before February 1, 2007 you may lose access to important resources (such as email, file shares, and printers) until you change your password. For information on how fast passwords can be cracked, Click here.
IMPORTANT! - You will need to change your password on all mobile devices and computers that have your password saved. This includes Trio handheld phones, PDA's, Blackberry devices, VPN connections, Dial-up Connections, etc. If you need additional help, call the Helpdesk, (239) 590-1188.
FGCU Password Requirements To increase password strength and help prevent unauthorized access to University computer systems, passwords must:
Not contain your username.
Be at least eight characters in length.
Contain characters from three of the following categories:
English uppercase letters (A through Z)
English lowercase letters (a through z)
Numbers (0 through 9)
Special Characters (ex. !, &, #, $)
Examples of poor passwords:
Passwords that are the same as the username.
Default passwords.
Passwords shorter than eight characters.
Passwords in all lower case, all upper case, or all numbers.
Anything from a dictionary.
Examples of strong passwords:
Passwords greater than eight characters (longer the better)
Combinations of uppercase, lowercase, numeric, and special characters.
Passwords that contain a space make it significantly harder to guess.*
Passphrases are recommended by Computer Services as opposed to a single word.
Special characters in the middle of the password.
*Note: Cognos does not allow users to have a space in their password. If you use Cognos, do not put a space in your password!
