Password Hardening Journal

Organizations spend tons of time and money on the latest security software and hardware and exhaust themselves testing the security of every potential attack point in order to keep unauthorized users out. But what about users who are allowed in? How can you protect your network from them?

One of the forgotten elements of a truly secure infrastructure is password security. If a hacker breaks through your password defenses, he has unchecked access to everything that an authorized user or even a network administrator has. Check out the pieces in this journal to find out how to secure your organization at this often overlooked level.

Password hardening tips The first step in stopping a hacker is to think like one. If you can't crack a password that you created yourself, then a hacker is that much more unlikely to be able to accomplish the feat. Check out this series of tips to see how to harden and find out if your methods (or lack thereof) of password creation and management fall into the best-practices bucket. Building better password policies Windows password management myths How to crack a password Checklist: Key control settings to harden password authentication Create secure passwords you don't have to remember In our featured password hardening tip, "How to Bypass BIOS passwords", we provide you with a list of known BIOS passwords that you can use in the event that you forget your password. We also supply you with a series of quick tips and password cracking software.

Dear experts... Are you having issues creating passwords that are secure enough to adequately protect your network? Have you forgotten your password and need a way around it? Or are you just curious about password management best practices? Our IT security experts are all fully capable of answering any password related questions you might have. Password hardening best practices Password change time frames Hacking around a forgotten password Cost-effective password security Solving login/lost password issues If the questions and answers listed above don't help you, feel free to pose your own question to experts Kevin Beaver, Jonathan Hassell or Wes Noonan. Click on this section's feature tip for a collection of quick questions and answers from our site experts.

PHU: Password hardening university If you're looking for a lot of information in a short amount of time, look no further than Password Hardening University. In this section, we give you links to the different collections of password hardening pieces we've put together for you over the past few months, such as learning guides, featured topics and checklists. Don't miss our most comprehensive password protection piece, 25 password hardening tips in 25 minutes. Password hardening Step-by-step guide: Cracking network passwords Crash Course: Passwords Checklist: Hardening user passwords Checklist: Changes you should make to password policy default settings

Password toolbox Sometimes, you need more than information to properly protect your valuable data. Every good carpenter has a toolbox full of tools he can depend on to build the sturdiest structure possible. Password security is no different. Whether you want to test the strength of your existing password or give yourself a work-around in the event you forget your password, a proper set of tools can prove invaluable. Use these free tools that you can use to test the strength of your passwords. NetBIOS Auditing Tool Ophcrack Offline NT Password and Registry Editor Login Recovery John the Ripper If you don't find a tool you like here, check our Windows security download library for the latest downloadable additions to SearchWindowsSecurity.com. Also, check out the favorite freeware selections from select users and experts.

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RELATED GLOSSARY TERMS Terms from Whatis.com − the technology online dictionary strong password  (SearchWindowsSecurity.com)

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