MaxxKonnect has released a free, web-based password generator built to help radio and TV stations comply with the Federal Communications Commission’s new cybersecurity password requirements that go into effect this month.
The tool, available at fccpassword.com, generates random 15-character passwords that meet the FCC requirements and screens each result to exclude dictionary words as well as common one- and two-letter words. Passwords are generated locally in the user’s browser.
Users do not need to create an account to access the tool, though filling out a form is required.
Those requirements go into effect Sept. 29 and apply to Emergency Alert System equipment, studio-transmitter links and other remotely managed equipment that routes, processes or inserts content into a station’s programming.
Under the commission’s new rules, passwords used to secure this equipment must be 15 characters long, cannot contain dictionary words and must not be reused across other accounts, equipment, applications or services.
A compliant password addresses only the password portion of the FCC’s new requirements, MaxxKonnect emphasized, as stations remain responsible for installing security patches and firmware updates promptly and for protecting covered equipment with a firewall or comparable network-segmentation method.
