<html><head></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><p class="MsoNormal"><img id="ca046776-6dc4-4f26-859e-bf2f38be9f5d" height="80" width="640" apple-width="yes" apple-height="yes" src="cid:ABE2F62E-6E45-47D0-A4EF-ED071F0E67AC@mit.edu"></p><p class="MsoNormal">October is Cyber Security Awareness Month! The
theme is "Our Shared Responsibility" – i.e., we all have a
responsibility to practice good "cyber hygiene" to protect MIT, others
and ourselves. Just as getting a flu shot and washing your hands can help
prevent flu, so too can some software tools and good computing practices
protect against computer security incidents, including data breaches.</p><div>This email is a first in a series of weekly tips I will be be offering to the community. I hope they will be useful to you!</div><p class="MsoNormal"><b>Tip of the week: strong (complex) passwords</b></p><p class="MsoNormal">Would you have one key made that opens your house, your car,
your office, and your safety deposit box? Of course not!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Use different passwords for different
activities and keep your MIT passwords separate from passwords you use for
personal business. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Create complex passwords, using a scheme you can remember,
but which others won’t be able to guess. This means:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>8 or more characters (longer is better)</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>a combination of letters, numbers and special
characters (e.g. %, &, @, !, $)</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>avoid using “$” for “s”, or “@” for “a” – the
bad guys know that trick</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Some examples (but please don’t use these):</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>51ex$ample# -- a word you will remember</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>1AAAD$KTDA! -- using the first letters of each word from a phrase you will remember (An Apple A Day Keeps The Doctor Away)</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>#8paris$ -- make up a new ‘mother’s maiden
name’ or ‘city where you were born’ </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Of course, you may have too many passwords to remember them
all.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo3"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>If you write them down, make sure the paper is
kept somewhere inconspicuous (e.g. not next to your computer, or filed under
“P” for passwords)</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo3"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>If you create an electronic file (e.g. Word,
Excel) be sure to encrypt it – password protecting the file is not
enough! </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo3"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><span style="mso-list:Ignore">•<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"">
</span></span></span>Consider using a secure, online password
function, such as LastPass, or the secure functionality on your smart phone (although not endorsed by IS&T, here is the site for LastPass: <a href="https://lastpass.com/">https://lastpass.com/</a>)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Note that a strong password for some, may not be strong enough for others, and password policies differ for each system that requires a password for access. Using much longer phrases (using more than 20 characters) for passwords is another option. For more about passwords, see
<a href="http://ist.mit.edu/security/passwords">http://ist.mit.edu/security/passwords</a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Please contact the IT Security Systems & Services team (<a href="mailto:security@mit.edu">security@mit.edu</a>) if you have any questions,
comments, or would like the team to give a presentation to your department or
group. If you have a concern about sensitive data, or believe data may
have been exposed, contact <a href="mailto:infoprotect@mit.edu">infoprotect@mit.edu</a>.</p><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><div><div><br></div><div>Monique</div><div><br></div><div>=========================</div><div>Monique Yeaton</div><div>IT Security Awareness Consultant</div><div>MIT Information Services & Technology (IS&T)</div><div>(617) 253-2715</div><div><a href="http://ist.mit.edu/security">http://ist.mit.edu/security</a></div><div><br></div><br></div></div><br></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline">
</div>
<br></body></html>