Technology Sure Is Grand

When the City of Phoenix Prosecutor’s Office began using eDiscovery, “a web portal accessible from the World Wide Web that provides defense attorneys the ability to view/play and download case related discovery electronically,” I was almost enthusiastic. Anything apparently intended to make important information quickly and easily available to defense lawyers seems like a good idea to me.

My first clue that it might not be so convenient came when I didn’t get to select my own user name. What they picked for me wasn’t bad, but it certainly wasn’t something easy to remember. My first password was a different story:

Nz8+j0~H?f

Got that? Didn’t think so. Here are the requirements for a password:

When setting a password, make sure the password requirements are satisfied:
– Must be a minimum length of ten characters
– Must contain at least one uppercase alpha character (a-z)
– Must contain at least one number (1-9)
– Must contain at least one special character ($, ?, !)
– Can NOT contain spaces
Example password: Testing01!

The problem is compounded by the fact I have to pick a new confusing password every 31 days, one that necessarily has to be one I’m going to suck at remembering. Plus, I’m only able to repeat one of my confusing and unfamiliar passwords after using 25 different confusing and unfamiliar passwords.

I’m reminded of a great XKCD comic:

I know I initially saw that thanks to another blawger, but I couldn’t figure out who. Let me know if it’s you!

Anyway, as I find is often the case, the silly password game eventually devolved into me creating new passwords sort of like this one:

eDiscoveryBl0ws!!!

But wait. Was it the “o” in “discovery” or the “o” in “blows” that I replaced with a zero? Dammit!

Of course, none of it really mattered because it didn’t take too long before I received someone else’s discovery through the account I frequently struggle to access. I wonder how many other lawyers have gotten my clients’ discovery sent to their difficult-to-access accounts. They sure do run a tight ship.

Well played, Phoenix, well played.