The problems with passwords have been harped on for years upon years. It would seem that one thing everyone agrees on is that passwords lack actual security. Seeing commentary about this by BBC comes as no surprise. But BBC seems to suggest that passwords are on the way out. Perhaps my grandkids will think of passwords the way we think of the telegram – useful in its time but woefully outdated. Unfortunately, that day is a very long way away.
Companies don’t like data breaches. They don’t like using flawed security. But the bottom line trumps the threat of a possible breach. In other words, the very real budget bears more weight than the virtual threat of, well, a virtual threat.
So far the primary alternatives to traditional passwords are biometrics and voice imprint. But these carry hefty implementation issues. Until information security professionals find a way to mimic the usability of passwords, anticipate and prevent future threats, and do it all without an inflated cost, passwords will remain the status quo.
A few cost effective and user-friendly innovations are making inroads, such as picture passwords and our authentication triangulation, part of the SafeLogin solution. As promising as these innovations are, corporations are slow to adopt new technology so any change will happen gradually, with dragging of feet and the periodic data breach sprinkled in as seasoning.