Changing Your Windows Password (Every 90 Days)
For security reasons, we are required to change our Windows account password every ninety (90) days. When this threshold is reached, you will be prompted for a password change upon your next login to a Windows computer, which cannot be skipped. This can also happen when FCIT manually resets your Windows password.
When creating your new password, it must meet the following criteria:
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Must not contain the user's account name or parts of the user's full name that exceed two consecutive characters.
- Fictional user, Elora Danan, could not use “elora” in their password, but could instead use “el0ra” using a zero instead of an “o.”
- Similarly, “d@nan” would not work, but “d@n@n” would because there are only two consecutive characters that are the same as their last name.
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Be at least ten (10) characters in length (12 recommended).
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Contain characters from three of the following four categories:
- English uppercase characters (A through Z)
- English lowercase characters (a through z)
- Base 10 digits (0 through 9)
- Non-alphabetic characters (for example, !, $, #, %)
Keep these helpful tips in mind when creating your password to keep it secure and easier to remember:
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Longer passwords are exponentially more difficult to crack for every character added, even if you use a dictionary word. If you can create a memorable passphrase that is a few characters longer than the minimum, you can use a single number and character to satisfy the requirements, and keep it easy.
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For example: Princessel0ra
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The 0 is a zero in the above password, which would take 100,000 years to crack with modern technology. If you didn’t use the capital letter and number, the password becomes “princesselora” and would take about a year to crack. Big difference!
- Do not use personal information that can be easily discovered as part of your password. Names of family members, pets, or even birthdays and anniversaries can be discovered by others on social media.
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Try the Security.org Password Strength Tool to check the strength of your password!
For additional help with choosing a good password, and to help understand why these changes are necessary, please see this article on What Makes a Good Password? <link to blog post>
Changing Your Password:
When the ninety (90) day threshold is reached, Windows will prompt you to change your password upon your next login. Click OK.
Enter your new password into the New password field, following the password requirements above. Confirm your new password by entering it again into the Confirm password field. Press Enter or click the arrow button.
If entered correctly, you will see a confirmation message. Click OK.
After clicking OK, you will be brought to your Windows desktop as usual. You have successfully changed your password!
Additional Information
If you are logged into another Windows device with the same account, you should log out of that device and log in again with your new password to ensure the new device can access your files and apps properly.
If you see an error after entering your passwords, use the “eye” icon in the password fields to see what you typed.
FCS utilizes Active Directory Services to manage Windows user accounts and Windows computers. These services are organized with a domain name, similar to websites on the Internet. Our domain name is FCS, and you will see the username field above has the domain before the first initial as “FCS\.” This indicates that you are connected to the FCS network. If you ever log in using a local computer account (this is extremely rare), you would replace this with the computer name.
If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to the Technology Department: FCIT Help Desk
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