NEW YORK: Microsoft wanted to go beyond the “password era” since it is becoming more and more inefficient and cumbersome for users to remember and type their codes. Codes and passwords also have become more insecure since intruders can find a way to decode a user’s password and use it to illegally log in.
The new Windows 10 OS is moving away from the use of passwords and will instead be incorporating biometric authentication such as fingerprints. The move will be part of the company’s support to the Fast Identification Online (FIDO) system, in which computers can only be accessed through a successful validation of the user’s physical and behavioral characteristics. This means that typing one’s password will become a thing of the past.
“Transitioning away from passwords and to a stronger form of identity is one of the great challenges that we face in online computing, and we believe FIDO authentication, which is the subject of great discussion here at the White House summit, is the pathway to success,” wrote Dustin Ingalls on the Windows’ blog.
The FIDO authentication system is not entirely new. The move to kill passwords and replace them with a better authentication solution has been under discussion among major companies for quite some time now. FIDO seemed to offer the best one-size-fits-all solution to a world where password authentication is no longer needed.
Microsoft became a member of the FIDO Alliance back in late 2013. Other major tech companies and businesses that share the similarly huge interest in ensuring security are Visa, PayPal, Mastercard, Lenovo, Google, Bank of America and Arm.
There’s no doubt that the biometric authentication system is inevitable since biometric scanners have been integrated into mobile devices, laptops and other gadgets for years. What makes FIDO unique is that it is an open standard system that makes it easy for any company to implement it in their services or products. Moreover, two-factor authentication devices and biometric scanners that are FIDO compliant can work well with any FIDO-supporting service.
Windows 10 is scheduled to be released around April. An early 2.0 version of FIDO can now be accessed in the latest Windows 10 Technical Preview.
