Monday, August 11, 2008

The Never Ending Story

It's been well over six months since I learned I was accepted to the University of Georgia and set up an online student account. The semester begins next Monday so it's come time to pay tuition. In an attempt to tie up all loose ends before class starts, I went online to pay. I guessed at my username and password. The first attempt failed which wasn't too much of a surprise.

Username: Charlottalove
Password: ******
Username and or password is not correct.

Hmm, I thought. I should make sure this is my username. I clicked on the ‘Forget Your Username?’ link.

Social Security Number: 123-45-6789
Birthday: **/**/****
Your username is ‘_____’

Okay, that wasn’t what I tried originally. Here I go for round 2.

Username: ‘_____’
Password: ******
Username and or password is not correct.

Hmm. This is frustrating. I guess I need to click the ‘Forget Your Password’ link.

To receive your password, you must answer your secret question.

Oh, this should be fun. Wonder which secret question I picked.

You have not selected a secret question. Click here to set up secret question.

Click.

Enter your username and password.

I don’t know my password!

Click here if you do not know your password.

Click.

Answer your secret question.

...ulg.

You have not selected a secret question. Click here to set up secret question.

Click.

Enter your username and password.

ARGH!

Dear UGA,
I have some money I want to give to you. All I ask for in return is my online password. Meet me behind the stadium at 5. I’ll have the money. Tell no one. This is top secret – much like the question I’ve yet to select.
Sincerely,
Charlottalove

10 comments:

Shankar said...

I never thought the day would come when a school would raise objections to receiving money from a student. The age of miracles has not ended.

Robbie said...

dont you just love technological security?!?! maybe president adams need s to switch his focus from trying to get rid of sports at UGA and focus on making the things they have work!!

Anonymous said...

NO LIE... not 5 minutes ago I was on the phone trying to process an order because I was a failure at inputting my username and password. Who can keep track of all of them? I feel your frustration sister!
Now, what was my username and password so I can post this comment. Hmmm (I failed it twice, I have to sign in as annon. again)

ME said...

Let's hope the coursework is easier to manage than paying tuition online.

Mary Mitchell said...

I'm totally stealing your social security number now

Beth said...

You must do what everyone advises you not to do - write down your user names, passwords, secret questions, etc. on pieces of paper for all on-line accounts and then hide the papers. You will then have a 50/50 chance of accessing those accounts again. (Only 50/50 because you will forget where you hid half those papers.)

Ashley and Aaron said...

This has happened to me too many times to count. I have so many usernames and passwords that all vary by a character or two and it's pretty much a guessing game every time I log in to anything. To sum up: I feel ya.

Unknown said...

HA! That was great. Sounds like most of the organizations I have to deal with.

Saule Cogneur said...

After stuff like this happening a dozen times, I gave up and started keeping my passwords on a spreadsheet. I know that defeats the purpose of "secret" passwords, but good grief, I have better things to do than remember 12 passwords that have to be changed every month an a half

Gwilliam House said...

Ahhh....the joys of multiple passwords. Just do what we do.. We use the same one for everything.....then what happens is some of them force you to select a new password, and you can't use your old one....then you have some that are using your old password, some that are using your new password, and some that you don't even remember if it's old or new. Then after three tries of selecting the wrong one, you are locked out and have no access at all. So you call customer service, and the nice lady in India tries to understand what you want your new password to be, but you have to give her your old password, but you don't know it. Just hang up and create a new password using your last name spelled backwards as your password.