Securing your account

This article is a draft

This is not a complete article: This is a draft, a work in progress that is intended to be published into an article, which may or may not be ready for inclusion in the main wiki. It should not necessarily be considered factual or authoritative.

Types of authentication

There are two primary authentication mechanisms that are used to connect to a cluster : passwords and SSH keys. Below are some best practices for both methods.

Password best practices

• Users are strongly encouraged to use unique passwords, and to never reuse them.
• Passwords are sensitive confidential information and users must never share or disclose them by any mean. Users should also refrain from disclosing tips that could help identify their passwords.
• Users are encouraged to never write down a password. In the situation where a user needs to write or store his password on a given media, it is acceptable to do so given that the appropriate security measures to prevent unauthorized access are in place (encryption, strong password protection, etc.). A user should never store or write a password to facilitate access or transfer between information systems.
• Users are encouraged to not use the "remember your password" feature of browser or operating systems.