Good Passwords

Due to a recent hack on our Telin mail server I advise you to think good about passwords.

Do not use one (1!) password for every service or account you ever need!

If hackers intercept your one and only password, they can enter any service, and we cannot find out where the hack came from. Many people argue:

That’s right, use password managers!

Of course these can be hacked too or be unrecoverable. A simple trick I use is to think of a good base password and extend it with extra letter(s) from the servicename itself. e.g. (F)acebook, (Tw)itter, (go)ogle, (tE)lin, (DI)ct… You can put it in capital or small letter(s), put it in the first position, last, or even for example on the 4th letter position of your base password. This way you will never forget your unique password on every website, service or account you need, as long as you use the same trick everywhere.

If you want to change your password in Telin, login in to password.telin with Git Bash, PuTTY or ssh and type the command password. Type your old password and 2 times your new password (the typing is not visible).

If you want to change your UGent password visit password.ugent.be.