IT Help › Password help
Password help
Changing your password, forgot it, locked out, or got a new phone? Start here.
Staff & students
Change your password
You know your current password and want a new one. On your SIIT laptop: press Ctrl+Alt+Delete → Change a password. Anywhere else: sign in below, then choose Password → Change.
mysignins.microsoft.com/security-info
Staff & students
Forgot your password or locked out
Enter your SIIT email, confirm it’s you with Microsoft Authenticator, then choose a new password.
This button always goes to a Microsoft address. If you ever land on a page that isn’t Microsoft’s, stop and contact the SIIT IT Dept.
passwordreset.microsoftonline.com
Staff & students
Set up Microsoft Authenticator or a new phone
Add the app that confirms it’s you. New phone? Do this before you wipe your old one. Staff: do this on your SIIT laptop or at an SIIT location. Step by step: Authenticator help.
mysignins.microsoft.com/security-info
Password rules
Don’t reuse an old password, and don’t use your SIIT password anywhere else. Don’t use your username or any part of your name. Don’t build it from SIIT, Saskatchewan, campus or city names, JobConnections, or the words students, faculty, password or welcome. Tip: three random words make a strong password that’s easy to remember.
Staff: your laptop PIN (Windows Hello)
Windows Hello is how you sign in to your SIIT laptop: your PIN, face or fingerprint instead of your password. It works only on that laptop, and it also signs you in to Outlook, Teams and your other Microsoft 365 apps there. It’s set up the first time you sign in to the laptop.
- Forgot your PIN: on the sign-in screen, choose I forgot my PIN. Sign in with your SIIT email and password, approve in Microsoft Authenticator, then choose a new PIN. Your laptop needs an internet connection.
- Change your PIN: Settings → Accounts → Sign-in options → PIN (Windows Hello) → Change PIN.
- Add your fingerprint or face: Settings → Accounts → Sign-in options → Fingerprint recognition or Facial recognition (if your laptop has one).
Shared classroom computers, such as the displays at the front of classrooms, don’t use Windows Hello. Sign in to those with your password.
Optional for staff: sign in with a passkey
A passkey is for signing in to Microsoft 365 somewhere other than your SIIT laptop, like another computer or a web browser. Instead of approving the sign-in in Microsoft Authenticator, you confirm with your phone’s face or fingerprint. You don’t need one; Authenticator approval is enough. It’s safer because it only works on Microsoft’s real sign-in page. You can set it up yourself with the steps below.
You’ll need Microsoft Authenticator already set up, and an iPhone (iOS 17 or later) or Android phone (Android 14 or later) with a screen lock (face, fingerprint or passcode).
- On your phone, turn on Authenticator for passkeys. iPhone: Settings → General → AutoFill & Passwords → Authenticator. Android: Settings → Passwords, passkeys & accounts → Authenticator.
- On a computer, go to mysignins.microsoft.com/security-info → Add sign-in method → Passkey → Microsoft Authenticator.
- Scan the QR code with your phone and confirm with your face, fingerprint or PIN. Keep Bluetooth on.
- If your phone asks where to save it, choose Authenticator, not iCloud or Google.
If the QR code step fails: turn on Bluetooth on both your phone and computer, and keep the phone close. Check that Authenticator is turned on for passkeys (step 1). To sign in now, choose Other ways to sign in and approve in Microsoft Authenticator. Still stuck? Contact the SIIT IT Dept.
Stay safe
- SIIT will never email you a link to reset your password.
- Only enter your SIIT password on Microsoft’s sign-in page (login.microsoftonline.com).
- Asked to change your password when you sign in? That’s real. Follow the steps on screen.
- Got a suspicious email? Forward it to phishing@siit.ca, or use Report → Phishing in Outlook. See scams and phishing.
Want to know more?
Why staff passwords no longer expire every 90 days
Changing passwords on a schedule pushes people toward predictable patterns, like Fall2026! and then Winter2026!. Current advice from Microsoft and international security standards is a long password plus a second check like Microsoft Authenticator, changed only when there’s a reason.
Once you have Microsoft Authenticator, Windows Hello on your SIIT laptop, or a passkey, and you’ve chosen a new password of at least 14 characters, your password no longer expires. Your SIIT laptop sets up Windows Hello and Authenticator the first time you sign in to it, so all you need is the new password. Until then it still expires every 90 days. Student passwords don’t expire.
Why we might ask you to change your password
Our security system watches for signs that someone else may be trying to use your account, such as sign-ins from unusual places. If it sees something, it asks you to confirm it’s you. If your password may be known to someone else, it also asks you to choose a new one straight away. That’s the system protecting your account, not a mistake.
Why Microsoft Authenticator?
A password alone can be guessed or stolen. Authenticator adds a second check on your own phone, so even someone who knows your password can’t sign in without your approval. Only approve sign-ins you started yourself.
What is a passkey, and why is it safer?
A passkey lets your phone prove it’s you, unlocked by your face, fingerprint or PIN. Nothing is typed, so there’s nothing to steal, and it only works on Microsoft’s real sign-in page, so fake websites can’t trick you into using it. SIIT passkeys stay in the Authenticator app on your phone and are never copied to iCloud or Google. Passkeys are for staff only.
What is Windows Hello, and why do we use it?
Windows Hello lets you sign in to your SIIT laptop with a PIN, your fingerprint or your face instead of typing your password. It’s set up for you the first time you sign in to a new SIIT laptop.
Your PIN only works on that one laptop and never leaves it, so someone who learns it can’t use it anywhere else, and nothing is typed that a fake website could steal. That’s why Windows Hello counts as a strong sign-in, like Microsoft Authenticator.
Need help?
Contact the SIIT IT Dept: 306-477-9765 · itsupport@siit.ca · Monday to Friday, 8 am to 4:30 pm (Saskatchewan time). After hours, leave a voicemail and we’ll call you back.
We will never ask for your password or the codes from your Authenticator app.