How to enforce password complexity on Linux | Hacker News Reader

How to enforce password complexity on Linux

itworld.com

6 pointskungfudoi4 comments

Can we all agree to stop forcing users to jump through these hoops? It's not helping security at all.

Requiring users to have a number, punctuation, mixed case, 10 digits, etc. may make the password itself more secure, but it's all for naught since the user just wrote it down on a Post It note because it's an unmemorable heap of bits.

Just run the username/password through a cracking library and if it doesn't crack then let them use it.

> Requiring users to have a number, punctuation, mixed case, 10 digits, etc. may make the password itself more secure, but it's all for naught since the user just wrote it down on a Post It note because it's an unmemorable heap of bits.

There is no realistic chance that the people who are interested in finding my passwords will be able to read a Post It note inside my house, so if having to use a more secure password causes me to resort to a Post It note it would not be for naught.

If you're setting requirenments on password for yourself then perhaps you've got some problems. This is matter of security in systems with many users where industrial espionage or social engineering might happen.

     PasswordAuthentication no
     PubkeyAuthentication yes

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