Below are three techniques for creating a password that meets our password complexity rules:

Construction Method 1: Base Word

  • Come up with a base word like the name of your favorite city, vacation spot or television program. Avoid using family names or the names of your pets. In this example we are using the name Louisville.
  • To increase the complexity of this name swap some letters with numbers or special characters like this: Lou1$ville or L0u!$ville
  • As the above chart indicates, passwords should be at least 10 characters in length (by state requirements, you must have a password of 10 or more characters). If your base word is too short, add some extra characters to get the password to the appropriate length.

NOTE: The new, more stringent password complexity rules would have an affect on you if your name was Louis Armstrong. In this example, your username would be Louis.Armstrong and the first example password, Lou1$ville, would have three consecutive letters the same as your username. The second example password, L0u!$ville, however would be acceptable.



Construction Method 2: Base Phrase

Come up with a base phrase like “I bear a charmed life” from Shakespeare’s Macbeth (Act V, Scene VIII). Use the first letter of each word, swapping numbers, capital letters, or special characters for some letters. Add the Act and Scene numbers. Remember your password should be 8 to 10 characters long. Be creative. Example: 1bacLa5s8 or I6aclA5S8

NOTE: In this example, the new, more stringent password complexity rules would have an affect on you if your name was Kevin Bacon. In this example, your username would be Kevin.Bacon and the first example password, 1bacLa5s8, would have three consecutive letters the same as your last name. The second example password, I6acIA5S8, however would be acceptable.



Construction Method 3: A Graphical Explanation

There are many techniques that people employee to create complex and secure passwords that they can still remember without having to write down the password.  The graphical construction is a popular technique.