passphrase

operating system A string of words and characters that you

type in to authenticate yourself. Passphrases differ from

passwords only in length. Passwords are usually short - six

to ten characters. Passphrases are usually much longer - up

to 100 characters or more. Their greater length makes

passphrases more secure. Modern passphrases were invented by

Sigmund N. Porter in 1982.

Phil Zimmermann's popular encryption program PGP, for

example, requires you to make up a passphrase that you then

must enter whenever you sign or decrypt messages.

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(1996-12-21)