Passwords and the new site

Azog · **Posted:** Tue Aug 17, 2010 10:23 pm

Dagorlad has already indicated that you will need to change you password when you login to the new version of the site.

It's worth reading the article below about passwords that was recently posted on the Register about how simple passwords are getting easier to crack using 'brute force' - trying all the combinations possible.

Members would be well advised to use a complex password (the researchers below suggest 12 characters long) and to not reuse one you use on other sites but keep it unique for the One Ring website.

Complex can be defined as a mixture of upper and lower case letters and numbers and not using a word that appears in a dictionary. I know this sounds hard but you can be creative and run a set of words together and add some numbers too.

Hopefully, this should mean our forum is as safe as it can be on the Internet.

Azog

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Short passwords 'hopelessly inadequate', say boffins
Modern processors smash puny defences

By John Leyden

Posted in Enterprise Security, 16th August 2010 14:19 GMT

The availability of password-cracking tools based on increasingly powerful graphics processors means that even carefully chosen short passwords are liable to crack under a brute-force attack.

A password of less than seven characters will soon be "hopelessly inadequate" even if it contains symbols as well as alphanumerical characters, according to computer scientists at the Georgia Tech Research Institute. The security researchers recommend passwords at least 12 characters long.

The number crunching abilities of graphics processors were recently applied to commercial password auditing and recovery tools from Russian developer ElcomSoft. It's a safe assumption that black hats are able to use the same type of technology for less laudable purposes. Richard Boyd, of the Georgia Tech Research Institute, told the BBC that the number-crunching capacity of graphics cards compares to those of supercomputers built only 10 years ago.

Longer passwords are better at withstanding brute force attacks that rely on trying every possible combination of characters, but just using longer passwords is not enough. Dictionary attacks still work on badly chosen (easy to guess) passwords, while even complex passwords of 20 characters are useless on machines infected with keylogging Trojans.

Eorling · **Posted:** Tue Aug 17, 2010 10:59 pm

Urgh, I know I should follow that advice, but I'm going to have to start keeping a bloody code book for all of them. What a pain in the bum, still better safe than sorry. Thanks Azog, good to see you again btw

.

Will.

Dagorlad · **Posted:** Wed Aug 18, 2010 12:10 am

And please make sure that your new password is different to your current password.

The way it will work is that the first time you log on after the upgrade, the system will tell you that your password is invalid and you will need to request a new password. It will email you a new password. So please make sure your email address is up to date.

Ranger of Gondor · **Posted:** Sun Aug 22, 2010 3:44 pm

Dagorlad wrote:

And please make sure that your new password is different to your current password.

The way it will work is that the first time you log on after the upgrade, the system will tell you that your password is invalid and you will need to request a new password. It will email you a new password. So please make sure your email address is up to date.

...that's strange... I logged in without anything of the sort? :roll:

Do you mean that it'll only function once the OR is back to it's regular self?

And what's wrong with all of our post counts? They're completely off :rofl:

MacGothmog · **Posted:** Sun Aug 22, 2010 3:52 pm

We did some prunning to help with the transition, though last time I checked wasn't this drastic.

Better be safe than sorry, everyone please change the password when you log to this new version...

Queen Berúthiel · **Posted:** Sun Aug 22, 2010 3:58 pm

Better safe then sorry i guess.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Sun Aug 22, 2010 4:20 pm

Mac said:

Quote:

We did some prunning to help with the transition

It must be something Portuguese... a folk dance? Football chant? Maybe he meant pruning? Punning?

Here is my silly question - this is the Beta version of the site so do we change passwords now or when the whole shebang is up and running?

hithero · **Posted:** Sun Aug 22, 2010 9:14 pm

I've logged on with my old password, no email or request to change it??

Dagorlad · **Posted:** Sun Aug 22, 2010 10:05 pm

No, I thought the forum software would automatically request you to change your password once the upgrade was completed, but it didn't :roll:

So can everyone please change your passwords now, thanks.

@dorth, The 'beta' thing is really just to indicate that the site is still being upgraded and what you see now isn't the final version. But the forum software isn't going to change any more, so changing your password now is fine, thanks.

BilboOfTheWhiteTower · **Posted:** Mon Aug 23, 2010 11:14 pm

Logged in and password changed/updated.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Tue Aug 24, 2010 5:46 pm

Password changed.

There is a Microsoft password strength tester that may help some of you come up with a better password/passphrase - https://www.microsoft.com/protect/fraud ... ecker.aspx

Blue Dragon · **Posted:** Tue Aug 24, 2010 6:48 pm

I know another password similar to that that suggests 15 characters.

theavenger001 · **Posted:** Wed Aug 25, 2010 12:33 am

I have now changed mine. I just checked it's strength and it's strong.

Eorltheyoung · **Posted:** Wed Aug 25, 2010 1:27 am

Password changed.

Blue Dragon · **Posted:** Wed Aug 25, 2010 8:59 am

I've done my new password.... too... long.... to....remember.....

....easily.

Feanorthenoldor · **Joined:** Wed Sep 02, 2009 6:44 pm **Posts:** 879

how do you exactly change your password..

I am logged on with my old password, but i need to obviously change it, how do i do that..

what buttons do i click.

thank you

MacGothmog · **Posted:** Thu Aug 26, 2010 12:52 am

Scroll to the top of the page... in the top right there's is a user control panel" option. Click that (or click here: ucp.php )
In the new page, on the left, there's a panel called "Options"... click Profile and then Edit account settings.

After this it should be pretty obvious.

Hope it helps.

Blue Dragon · **Posted:** Thu Aug 26, 2010 4:37 am

You wouldn't believe how long it took me to even find a way to the ucp....

Feanorthenoldor · **Joined:** Wed Sep 02, 2009 6:44 pm **Posts:** 879

yay, i got it, just changed password!

Passwords and the new site

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