# Things you wish you could say (at work) **URL:** \ **Category:** george\ **Created:** [August 24, 2013, 4:17pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435 "2013-08-24T16:17:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 22
**Author:** ![MikeP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@MikeP](https://cog.discourse.group/u/MikeP)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 12:51am UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/428 "2014-08-06T00:51:18Z")
That sounds like a really stupid way to handle it. Probably about the worst way. I can just imagine the conversation from the designers: > [@BOFH1](#): > > Hey, I’ve got an idea on how to really screw the customers over. How about we tell them that their password is about to expire and ask them if they want to change it. Nobody will actually do it of course because we are just asking them if they want to, then when the password expires we should just lock them out. > [@BOFH2](#): > > Great idea, that will cause huge numbers of calls to the help desks. We could make it even worse by prompting them every hour, then they will be really fuming when they call to get it unlocked. > [@BOFH1](#): > > Every hour is probably a bit much even for us, how about once a day? > [@BOFH2](#): > > Okay, this is your evil plan so we’ll go with that, but we need to start prompting them two weeks before it expires so they’ve got a chance to be really annoyed. > [@BOFH1](#): > > Done! ---
**Author:** ![moufassa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/moufassa/32/41_2.png) [@moufassa](https://cog.discourse.group/u/moufassa)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 4:56am UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/429 "2014-08-06T04:56:54Z")
We have had very similar experiences, especially with travelling sales reps who rarely reboot their laptops. The problem was exacerbated when we moved from XP to 7 - the latter doesn’t consistently inform the luser of their password’s imminent death. So I found a script on the intarwebs that searches AD and emails any luser with passwords nearing expiration, modded it for our environment so that it starts emailing 10 days before, and set it to run on a DC every day. Helps a lot - PM me if you want details. I’ve still had people tell me that they weren’t told that their password would expire… so I just refer them to the 10 emails that they deleted. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Darktan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/darktan/32/36_2.png) [@Darktan](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Darktan)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 2:39pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/430 "2014-08-06T14:39:49Z")
> [@moufassa](#): > > So I found a script on the intarwebs that searches AD and emails any luser with passwords nearing expiration, modded it for our environment so that it starts emailing 10 days before, and set it to run on a DC every day. Helps a lot - PM me if you want details. Send me this script. Or the link where you found it. I will say I wrote it from scratch and get accolades. ---
**Author:** ![dakboy](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/dakboy/32/68_2.png) [@dakboy](https://cog.discourse.group/u/dakboy)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 5:49pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/431 "2014-08-06T17:49:38Z")
Sounds like a fairly easy/straightforward PowerShell script. ---
**Author:** ![Darktan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/darktan/32/36_2.png) [@Darktan](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Darktan)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 6:42pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/432 "2014-08-06T18:42:57Z")
The problem reminds me of a mantra a friend of mine once told me and that I hold very true. ‘In IT there’s 20 ways to do something wrong and 5 ways to do it right.’ I’ve gone through a couple different ways to accomplish this from batch files at login, Powershell, exported Hyena reports and about 4 other ways of doing it. Every environment is different and I’ve given up expecting to find a canned solution for anything. So if anyone has a way that works, I like to know. ---
**Author:** ![Nabiki](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/nabiki/32/935_2.png) [@Nabiki](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Nabiki)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 6:51pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/433 "2014-08-06T18:51:19Z")
Umm… You want me to pick these two twelve year old boys at 6:30, and you don’t care what happens to them between then and 9 AM? Leave them at the civic center which isn’t open yet? No. They’re coming to my house to watch Japanese TV shows until I take them with me to go pick up the third kid. I didn’t say it in those words, but the two kids did come to my house to watch anime this morning until it was time to pick up the third kid. ---
**Author:** ![sig](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/sig/32/286_2.png) [@sig](https://cog.discourse.group/u/sig)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 1:53am UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/434 "2014-08-07T01:53:14Z")
It’s gotta be a group policy or something because we have AD at work and I’m one of those people who waits until the last moment to change my password. It will keep warning me, and finally it tells me I have to change it immediately on the day it expires. We don’t get locked out; it is waiting for me if I happen to be gone that day. I decline to change any more often than the 120 days or whatever ridiculous period it is. ---
**Author:** ![Ook](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/ook/32/72_2.png) [@Ook](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Ook)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 8:50am UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/435 "2014-08-07T08:50:11Z")
Dear $ProjectDamager I keep on telling you that Symantec licences should be renewed at $sites, but you conveniently ignore that fact. It is your responsibility to order new licences etc, not mine. Sod off, you’re creating stress for me. ---
**Author:** ![meitemark](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/meitemark/32/58_2.png) [@meitemark](https://cog.discourse.group/u/meitemark)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 2:03pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/436 "2014-08-07T14:03:30Z")
> [@sig](#): > > I decline to change any more often than the 120 days or whatever ridiculous period it is. I have yet to see anything good come out of forced password change. 3M makes money on it, since they sell the post-it notes that people writes their passwords on. Please, anyone, explain WHY passwords needs to be changed! (Unless it is a obvious reason, as in someone have gained access) ---
**Author:** ![GC8005](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/gc8005/32/92_2.png) [@GC8005](https://cog.discourse.group/u/GC8005)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 2:16pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/437 "2014-08-07T14:16:14Z")
A holdover from much older O/S’s IMO. A “moving target” approach. Change your password every 120 days and you lessen the chance of passwords being “hacked” Brute force attacks render this policy moot. Microsoft/Novell just left the 120 day as a default IIRC. Man I miss the Netware days… Got my first CNE in 1991… Wow! Has that much time passed? JT ---
**Author:** ![ClockWorkXon](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/clockworkxon/32/593_2.png) [@ClockWorkXon](https://cog.discourse.group/u/ClockWorkXon)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 4:08pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/438 "2014-08-07T16:08:16Z")
> [@Nabiki](#): > > You want me to pick these two twelve year old boys at 6:30, and you don’t care what happens to them between then and 9 AM? Leave them at the civic center which isn’t open yet? There are people in the world who I would not trust to decently parent a paper doll. You, @Nabiki, are at the opposite end of the spectrum. ---
**Author:** ![Woodman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/woodman/32/24_2.png) [@Woodman](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Woodman)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 6:22pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/439 "2014-08-07T18:22:05Z")
My password before mandated password changes was a random 8 digit alphanumeric, my new passwords at the office are simple variations on a theme with different numbers and or symbols at the end. Despite the fact that I had the other password for several years I’d bet it was still more secure than Password\_01. ---
**Author:** ![Nabiki](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/nabiki/32/935_2.png) [@Nabiki](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Nabiki)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 7:14pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/440 "2014-08-07T19:14:16Z")
I’ve always though of being a parent as a huge responsibility, one I’m not ready or qualified for. One of the reasons I’ve never become one. Another is because I just don’t like babies… ---
**Author:** ![e4tmyl33t](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/e4tmyl33t/32/1122_2.png) [@e4tmyl33t](https://cog.discourse.group/u/e4tmyl33t)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 7:34pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/441 "2014-08-07T19:34:37Z")
> [@Nabiki](#): > > I’ve always though of being a parent as a huge responsibility, one I’m not ready or qualified for. One of the reasons I’ve never become one. Another is because I just don’t like babies… I say the same thing. Mind you, I’ve also got an almost-10-year-old, so that doesn’t seem to have worked much… ---
**Author:** ![MikeP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@MikeP](https://cog.discourse.group/u/MikeP)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/442 "2014-08-07T21:00:53Z")
[quote=“Nabiki, post:440, topic:435”] I’ve always though of being a parent as a huge responsibility, one I’m not ready or qualified for [/quote]And that’s why you would likely make a very good parent. [quote=“Nabiki, post:440, topic:435”] Another is because I just don’t like babies… [/quote]And that’s why you probably would not 😆 On the subject of passwords, I prefer the term “pass _phrase_”. I have a password safe and keep all my web passwords in there. They are all randomly generated by the password safe and are generally 25 characters long (though some sites restrict password length) The passphrase to unlock the safe is about 30 characters long and I very much doubt that even a brute force attack could unlock it. My work passphrase is a bit shorter at 20 characters long, but I really doubt that that could be brute forced in any reasonable timespan. ---
**Author:** ![Viking](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/viking/32/32_2.png) [@Viking](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Viking)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 1:20am UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/443 "2014-08-08T01:20:16Z")
Dear $Boss, As a senior technical person, it’s part of my duty to advise you on technical matters and stop you from doing something particularly bone-headed. If you are so arrogant as to ignore what I’m telling you and go ahead with your brain-dead decision, the consequences are all yours. I have let the right people know that I had nothing to do with it. Hate, Viking ---
**Author:** ![Force10](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/force10/32/1550_2.png) [@Force10](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Force10)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 4:02pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/444 "2014-08-08T16:02:56Z")
This kind of stuff burns my ass. If you hire people to do your technical stuff why would you then not listen to them with regards to technical matters? ---
**Author:** ![ToasterFairy](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/toasterfairy/32/472_2.png) [@ToasterFairy](https://cog.discourse.group/u/ToasterFairy)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 11:49pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/445 "2014-08-08T23:49:29Z")
I’ve moved to a group at work that handles these requests. In just three weeks, every task I’ve worked on has been “pre-planned” by others. It is exactly as you are describing. This can only lead to tears. ---
**Author:** ![Viking](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/viking/32/32_2.png) [@Viking](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Viking)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2014, 12:17am UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/446 "2014-08-11T00:17:04Z")
In my case, he’s an MBA-waver without a technical clue in his head. You would _think_ that the manager of an IT security group would have some technical skills, but no. He’s been here almost 2 years now and still makes disparaging comments of technical people who have been here 10 times as long and know the place backwards. ---
**Author:** ![Blurr](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/cog.discourse.group/blurr/32/4237_2.png) [@Blurr](https://cog.discourse.group/u/Blurr)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2014, 9:58pm UTC](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435/447 "2014-08-11T21:58:47Z")
Stop panicking whenever an issue with the switch happens. You already got my email to the engineers telling them about it and the troubleshooting I’ve done. It doesn’t help that you think I’m not caring about it just because I’m calm whenever said issue happens. And for crying out loud, don’t just glance at the emails and tell me you read it. I know you didn’t read it because I have to remind you what the possible causes of said issues are and what’s being done when you come panicking to me. [Previous page](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435.md?page=21) [Next page](https://cog.discourse.group/t/things-you-wish-you-could-say-at-work/435.md?page=23)