RE: Minimum password requirements

["Hamish Stanaway" <koremeltdown () hotmail com>]

Hi there Randy,

I have a few questions, comments etc :).
First off sounds like your on the right track with your policy.
My first question is, why can the passwords not be changed for the first 14 
days? This presents a possible security risk in that anyone brute forcing 
etc in an attempt to gain control of an account would have ample time to get 
in. You might have a valid reason for implementing this policy but there is 
an angle yu may have never considered before.
My second commend is that I would probably chop that 90 day period right 
down to 30-60 days, as again brute forcing is an issue.
It might be an idea at the administrative end to ensure that failed login 
attempts are logged :)
You might have some trouble with the 10 past passwords cannot be used, as 
users tend to forget lots of new passwords, therefore they WILL write the 
passwords down - then someone will find it, and you will have problems of 
someone logging on as someone other than themselves.
I also don't believe that "owning" your own account is a good terminology - 
this implies that this is the "users" property. This also means that unless 
they are breaking a law, they can pretty much do as they wish as it is their 
"property". You might be better referring to it as "leased", or something 
along those lines. You will have to fine tune all words, as it only takes 
one little mistake for a user to eventually find a hole in your 
documentation and exploit it like any hacker would :).
Hopefully my points have helped you out some.

Kindest of regards,

Hamish Stanaway, CEO

Absolute Web Hosting, -= KoRe WoRkS =- Internet Security
Auckland
New Zealand

http://www.webhosting.net.nz
http://www.buywebhosting.co.nz
http://www.koreworks.com




> From: "Randall M Gunning" <securityfocus () randygunning com>
> To: <security-basics () securityfocus com>
> Subject: Minimum password requirements
> Date: Thu, 15 Jul 2004 08:26:57 -0700
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>
> I am working on implementing some minimum standards for our department. I 
> am
> wondering what the list thinks of these standards:
>
> a. Passwords must be changed at least every 90 days.
> b. Passwords cannot be changed for at least 14 days.
> c. Previous passwords cannot be reused (at least the last 10).
> d. User ids and passwords are "owned" by an individual and must not be
> shared with others.
> e. User accounts that have not been accessed (i.e. logged in to) for 30 
> days
> will be deactivated.
> f. Inactive user accounts will be deleted after 14 days.
>
> The numbers I have used are what I used in the corporate world for systems
> that had no special security requirements (i.e. they did not have any
> confidential data on them). What are other people doing for this type of
> standard, if anything? Also, if you had your choice (not subject to a
> committee agreeing), what would you choose for these items?
>
> Please let me know if you have any questions.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Randy
>
>
>
>
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to facilitate one-on-one interaction with one of our expert instructors. 
Attend a course taught by an expert instructor with years of in-the-field 
pen testing experience in our state of the art hacking lab. Master the skills 
of an Ethical Hacker to better assess the security of your organization. 
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