(Wikimedia Commons)

Vice President for LBIS Ron Griggs alerted us to this article from Kenyon Today detailing the College’s changing standards for the passwords used to log into Kenyon computers and networks. While we previously had to use a combination of lower and upper case letters, numbers and punctuation when crafting passwords, those requirements are being thrown out in favor of the rule that all passwords must be at least 14 characters long.

The idea encourages coming up with longer phrases that are easier to remember than a password that is half numbers, half tildes. In the article, Griggs suggests using lines from favorite songs, works of literature or movies in order to meet the length requirement, so we look forward to opening The Great Gatsby every time we need to reset our passwords. Although these letters-only passwords may seem simpler to humans, they are actually more difficult for nefarious computer programs to crack.

The change takes effect on January 1, but you won’t be required to change your password to meet the requirements until your old one expires. Here’s a useful website that helps you test the strength of your passwords.