Accounts and Passwords
Students
Students are assigned a username and a password as soon as they are officially registered at Ontario Tech. Details are included in a letter from the Registrar which acknowledges a deposit has been paid to Ontario Tech. If you are unable to locate this document, visit the IT Service Desk for assistance.
Faculty and Staff
- If you are hired as a full-time employee, Human Resources will request the creation of your network account.
- If you are part-time faculty or part-time staff, your manager or his/her designate will need to contact the IT Service Desk to request an email account for you (once an Ontario Tech employee number has been created).
Visit the IT Service Desk if you are having difficulty with your account or password.
Creating, Changing or Resetting your Password
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Network Password
Students
The Self-Service Network Password Management tool allows students (on or off campus) to set up a profile of 'secret' questions as an option to reset a network password. These secret questions MUST be set up prior to the tool being used as they are tied to your network password at the time of enrollment. Once you have set up your profile, you will be able to:
- Change your password (if you know your current password)
- Reset your password (if you don't know your current password)
- Unlock your account (if you remember your password)
- Edit your profile (edit the questions and answers in your password reset profile)
Faculty and Staff
To change your network password:
- Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete when logged into the network (while on campus) and select Change Password.
- Please keep in mind when changing this password that it MUST be at least 8 characters in length and cannot be one of your previous 5 passwords that have been used.
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Banner/FAST Password (Faculty and staff)
Faculty and staff can visit the Banner/FAST Password Reset Tool to reset their password for the Banner and FAST administrative applications.
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Tips on Creating a Strong Password
- Use at least 8 characters, preferably more, with a combination of upper and lower case characters, numbers, and symbols.
- Substitute letters with numbers and punctuation marks or symbols. For example, @ can replace the letter "A", and an exclamation point (!) can replace the letters "I" or "L".
- Get creative. Use phonetic replacements, such as "PH" instead of "F". Or make deliberate, but obvious misspellings, such as "enjin" instead of "engine".
- Use different passwords for different accounts.
- Memorize your password; if you cannot, consider using a password safe or manager such as LastPass or KeePass. These tools can also generate secure passwords and save them automatically for you.
- Use what is known as a rhythmic phrase.
- An example is "Along came a spider and sat down beside her" would become Ac@saSdb4. The example shows how to increase the complexity of the password and it not be a commonplace word.
- Do not use words found in a dictionary from any language.
- Do not use commonplace phrases.
- Do not make passwords easy to guess by using personal information, such as your name, pets' names or birthdays. This information is often easy to find on social media, making it easier for cybercriminals to hack your accounts.
- Do not use words spelled backwards.
