Apple, Google, Microsoft announce support for passwordless logins

Remembering dozens and dozens of passwords could soon be a thing of the past.

Three major technology companies announced plans last week to support a passwordless login standard on tech devices.

Apple, Google and Microsoft said a new, faster and more secure login method is expected to be available on major tech platforms over the next year.

Created by the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium, the technology will simplify logins across devices, websites and applications, regardless of platform.

Signing in works in conjunction with something that is probably already next to you – your smartphone.

“Your phone stores a FIDO login information called a passcode that is used to unlock your online account,” Google explained. “To sign in to a website on your computer, all you need is your phone nearby and you are simply asked to unlock it for access. Once you’ve done this, you won’t need your phone and you can sign in by just unlocking your computer.”

Other login options may be by simple fingerprint or face verification, or a device PIN.

As Microsoft reported, 921 passwords are attacked every second, which is a frequency that has doubled in the past 12 months.

Compromised passwords can lead to account takeovers, data breaches and even stolen identities.

Signing in with just a password is said to be one of the biggest security problems on the Internet, and managing so many passwords is cumbersome, often leading consumers to reuse the same passwords for different services.

This new passwordless login standard being created reduces several risks.

“The standards developed by the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium and led into practice by these innovative companies is the kind of forward thinking that will ultimately keep the American people safer online,” said Jen Easterly, director of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Source: q13fox