Yahoo to Phase Out Passwords
Posted by: Timothy Weaver on 10/20/2015 09:27 AM [ Comments ]
Yahoo is planning on taking passwords to a new level; total annihilation.
Starting this Thursday, Yahoo will be using a new service called Yahoo Account Key, which uses smartphones to verify identities in lieu of traditional passwords.
When a user signs up for Account Key and then wishes to access their Yahoo Mail, a verification email will be sent to their Smart Phone. With a tap on yes or no, users can indicate it is a legitimate attempt to get into the account or deny unauthorized access.
Dylan Casey, vice president of product management, said that the new service is more secure than passwords since it prohibits anyone from signing in to access an account without the verification that Account Key provides.
Satnam Narang, a security manager with Symantec, called the approach "a step above a password" but said it still falls short of the golden standard of what's known as two-factor authentication. He went on to say: "I think passwords are going to be around for a little while, I don't think they're going away as soon as we'd like them to. They're so ingrained in everything we do from banking to email to shopping, you name it."
Source: Rueters
When a user signs up for Account Key and then wishes to access their Yahoo Mail, a verification email will be sent to their Smart Phone. With a tap on yes or no, users can indicate it is a legitimate attempt to get into the account or deny unauthorized access.
Dylan Casey, vice president of product management, said that the new service is more secure than passwords since it prohibits anyone from signing in to access an account without the verification that Account Key provides.
Satnam Narang, a security manager with Symantec, called the approach "a step above a password" but said it still falls short of the golden standard of what's known as two-factor authentication. He went on to say: "I think passwords are going to be around for a little while, I don't think they're going away as soon as we'd like them to. They're so ingrained in everything we do from banking to email to shopping, you name it."
Source: Rueters
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