The downside of using the alter user command to change a password is that the command (and the password) is transmitted in clear text over the network.

If you are not using other methods to ensure a secure connection (ssh, Oracle advanced security, etc.) I would advise to instead use the password command.

Since Oracle 8 you have the option to use password user_name or passw user_name

SQL> passw scott Changing password for scott New password: Retype new password: Password changed 

There is an post by Pete Finnigan about this topic.

The downside of using the alter user command to change a password is that the command (and the password) is transmitted in clear text over the network.

If you are not using any other methods to ensure a secure connection (ssh, Oracle advanced security, etc.) I would advise to instead use the password command.

Since Oracle 8 you have the option to use password user_name or passw user_name

SQL> passw scott Changing password for scott New password: Retype new password: Password changed 

There is a post by Pete Finnigan about this topic.