Strong Passwords

Life is full of passwords. We use them every day to shop online and to access email, social media and University systems. Passwords prove who you are and help stop identity theft, fraud and confidential information falling into the wrong hands.

Using strong passwords, or passphrases, is an essential part of protecting your online accounts. A strong password is one that is unique, long and hard to guess.

Tips for securing your passwords

Do:

Use a unique, strong password for each of your online accounts.
Use 3 random words to create a strong password
Use multi-factor authentication where it’s available, especially on your most important accounts, like email and online banking.
Use a password manager to help manage your passwords

Don’t:

Do not reveal your password to anyone by any means
Do not write down your password or store it in a document or file
Use your University password for any other service or on any other website
Use personal details such as the names of family members, pets or your favourite sports teams
Use single words from the dictionary, as these can be easily cracked
Use variants of single words from the dictionary e.g. september1, s3pt3mb3r, etc.

Tips for creating a strong password

A strong password should consist of a minimum of 15 characters.

Here is an example of how to create a strong password using a number of random unrelated words.

It is currently considered industry best practice to create a password by stringing a number of random unrelated words together. Digital Services recommends that passwords are created by stringing together a minimum of 4 random unrelated words, numbers and special characters.

For example:

Combination of 4 or more random words	Password
two red pen dog	Tworedpendog7!
fish blue one tree	!Fishblueonetree9
all fly over cake	aLlfly9overcake+
fun kid pond men	fuNkidpondmen2@

Using the initial or last letter of a personally well-known phrase	Password
I was born in Hull and moved to Norwich when I was 10	iwb!Ham2Nwiw10
I have one dog, 2 cats and a pony	IhOd2caaP+
The two planets, Earth and Mars are both bigger than the Moon	T2pEaMaBbttM!

Online Strong Password Generators

There are many online tools, such as Strong Password Generator, that can assist in helping you to create a strong password.

Password Policy (University of Lincoln Staff and Students Only)

Please note you will need to sign in to the University Portal to access this content.

Policies & Guidance

The Digital Services Policies & Guidance Portal Site contains the currently active password policy. It also includes mandatory policies regarding IT Usage and any procedures that need to be taken internally within the University.