OFFICE OF THE CHIEF INFORMATION SECURITY OFFICER, UC SAN DIEGO
OFFICE OF THE CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER, UC SAN DIEGO HEALTH
January 10, 2022
ALL STUDENTS AT UC SAN DIEGO
Notice of Required Password Change
Dear Tritons,
Because we are committed to your cyber-safety, all UC San Diego students are required to change their Active Directory (AD) password -- effective immediately -- as part of a campuswide cybersecurity initiative. The password change requirement applies to all undergraduate, graduate and professional students, as well as medical and pharmacy students.
Your AD account (sometimes called TritonLink account) is used for email, TritonLink, Canvas, computer labs, Wi-Fi and more.
Please review the new password criteria and deadlines below, including a new minimum password length of 12 characters. All students must change their password, even if it’s already 12 characters or longer. Some of you may have already changed the password on your UC San Diego employment account. This requirement applies to your student account.
Password Change Deadlines Password change deadlines will be staggered over the next several weeks in order to balance the load on systems and the Service Desk. You will receive direct notifications of your deadline via email and each time you log in via Student SSO (in the two weeks preceding your deadline).
When your deadline hits, you won’t be able to access your TritonLink account or course materials on Canvas, but can still change your password at password.ucsd.edu.
Include characters from at least 3 of the following 4 categories: uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols
Not contain any part of your username
Enhanced AD Password Resiliency and General Password Guidance To counteract ongoing threats, we have implemented the following changes to increase campus password resiliency:
All AD passwords must be a minimum of 12 characters in length.
Any password known to be available on the dark web or that has been part of a previous compromise will be rejected, even if that password meets the password formation criteria.
The password change site, password.ucsd.edu, is now protected by two-step login.
Additionally, please follow the below guidance on establishing and managing your password.
Use a passphrase - it’s more secure than a password and easier to remember.
Do not use your university password for any of your personal accounts.
Use a password manager. LastPass is available for free to all faculty, staff, and students at UC San Diego. Visit lastpass.ucsd.edu to get started.
