Anyone else out there has a secret list hidden somewhere with your log in names and passwords due to the countless devices and websites you deal with daily? I am amazed at the amount of passwords we are required to have for our day-to-day tasks. I am also amazed the depth at which passwords can be broken. It is now being said that passwords up to 55 characters can be stolen. These risk factors are encouraging the new wave of identify verification, some involve the iris in your eye, your heartbeat, your voice, or your finger. With our entire lives surrounded by being connected to the Internet, the question is, what is the best way for a computer to authenticate our identity? An alternative released by Apple this week will incorporate the scanning of your fingertip, rather different approach that what Motorola has leaked- toying with the idea of electronic tattoos. Now that just seems creepy, doesn’t it? An engineer recently said, “The Achilles’ heel of the Internet of things is, how do you secure access to all these things?” and I find that to be the perfect question.

 
What a great quote to bring up. Because we are all so connected, from email, jobs, to endless smart devices and appliances in our homes, how are we able to maintain “healthy and secure” connections? Are they not devised to protect us? Of course they are, in theory. However, with all the hackers and encryption breakers out there, is there still such thing as technical security? Catch 22, much? Well, as it becomes more essential to be cautious of our identity, it ironically might mean that having passwords and IDs isn’t the right idea, at least for every single device. If you aren’t already aware of the amount of password tools there are out there, allow me to provide examples. A start up in California, Clef, developed an app for your mobile that lets you send en encrypted key right to your desktop, then that website you are logging into recognizes you because of the app you have. Launchkey, another start-up has the same idea except you slide your finger once the app opens to authorize authentication. Currently still in the labs (thankfully), is a headset with the ability to read our minds to verify a password. OneID, also based in California, offers a single log in for multiple devices and sites and requires just a touch from your phone app.

 
Now that last idea I like, not having to log into different devices a million different ways, as A) I tend to forget my logins and B) it takes up time. Problem is, this OneID system has to wait for some catching up from devices and sites that have yet to be compatible with it. Another idea, an odd one at that, is a heartbeat monitor called Nymi, used to identify you and “securely” communicate with all of your devices. Very specific, and that is the exact reason it should be a while until Nymi takes off. It is obvious that adopting some fancy new password alternative won’t exactly work well at the moment. It is also becoming clear that one day certain devices won’t even have a keyboard to type a password into. So where does that leave us? I am sure popularizing different schematics for our log-on are close ahead. However just as we worry that our 15 character password could get hacked, who is to say someone tapping into our OneID and being exposed to our entire identity couldn’t be worse?