If you haven't changed your email password recently, ITS recommends that you do so soon and regularly.
ITS is aware of several cases of email accounts being compromised in the last few weeks (see Ithacan story) and recommends that you change and strengthen your password, especially if you have been using the same one for more than a few months. ITS also strongly suggests that you not use the same password for all systems; don't use the same password for email that you use for public sites such as banking or social sites (i.e. Facebook).
The College is moving towards stronger password rules for most systems, and those rules will soon be enforced for email passwords. It is common (bad) practice for passwords to contain dictionary words, which makes them easily "crackable" by tools designed to steal passwords. A strong password is one that contains several seemingly random letters, numbers, and special characters, and is changed often.
These are just some of the strong password requirements that will be enforced for email passwords in the near future, so why not get used to the new rules and create a stronger password now? See our guide for tips on creating a password that is hard to guess but easier to remember than you might think.
If you have any questions please contact the Helpdesk at helpdesk@ithaca.edu or 4-3282.
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20070919151350697