John Wood Community College Password Complexity Information:

Passwords are the entry point to our network resources. Protecting access to our resources is pivotal in ensuring that our systems remain secure. While we have not been exploited, nor do we expect to be, we must be diligent in guarding access to our resources and protecting them from threats both inside and outside our organization.

The following systems have systematically enforced password requirements as stated:

Network and client operating system (and Outlook): Passwords must meet the following criteria:

• Password may not contain all or part of the user's account name.

• Password is at least seven characters long.

• Password must contain characters from three of the four categories:

  • English uppercase characters (A…Z)

  • English lowercase characters (a…z)

  • Numeric (0…9)

  • Non-alphanumeric (exclamation point [!], dollar sign [$], pound sign [#], percent sign [%], etc.)   

 Users will automatically be prompted at login to change their password every 180 days.

 Password handling

• Passwords should not be spoken, written, e-mailed, hinted at, shared, or in any way known to anyone other than the user involved. This includes supervisors and personal assistants.

• Passwords should not be your name, address, date of birth, username, nickname, or any term that could easily be guessed by someone who is familiar with you.

• Passwords should not be displayed or concealed on your workspace.

Full cooperation with this policy is expected so that all security goals are met. If you have any questions please contact the Help Desk at x4325 or email us at helpdesk@jwcc.edu.

How to change your expired password:

To change your password follow these steps: (From Windows XP)

1. Click OK on the screen that says "your password has expired"
2. A box will appear with the following information
   USERNAME: your username
   LOG ON TO:  JWCC
   OLD PASSWORD:  Type your current password
   NEW PASSWORD:  What you'd like the new password to be
   CONFIRM NEW PASSWORD:  Retype the new password
3. Select "OK", and your password should be changed.

To change your password follow these steps: (From the website)

1. Click here to bring up the password change dialog box.
2. Enter the following information:
   DOMAIN:  JWCC
   ACCOUNT:  Your username
   OLD PASSWORD:  Your current password
   NEW PASSWORD:  What you'd like the new password to be
   CONFIRM NEW PASSWORD:  Retype the new password
3. Select "OK", and your password should be changed.

You can view the complete Computer Account Reset Policy here.

If you encounter any difficulties in this process, please contact the Help Desk at (217)641-4325