What is the future of authentication? Looking at all the available technologies in the consumer authentication market, it is possible to see two general trends, which seem to be going in somewhat different directions:

1) The first approach is to keep the old passwords, but build around them a layered protection mechanism. The key driver is the fear that the user will not want to accept any change in the way they authentication.

2) Another approach is to admit that passwords are the weakest link (really the passwords + users). This perspective calls for a paradigm shift in the way we use passwords in general. Rather than applying more and more patches on an inherently insecure authentication approach, why not look for an effective and simple way to adopt a new generation of passwords – Passwords 2.0? I guess the best illustration of this approach is to think of the car keys. We had keys because we have house keys and that’s what we know to be secure. Now, the newest cars have a “Start” button, while the “key” is reduced to a token device which in close proximity to the car acts as owner identification and allows the car to start. In a similar fashion, what worked for the mainframe in closed networks is obviously not working for the 21st century WWW and requires a paradigm shift – a new kind of “keys”.

Comments anyone?

But what are the key elements in the “next generation”, or Passwords 2.0 world of authentication? Dr. Norman Fraser (CEO of Tricerion) just published a white paper which addresses the issues of “guessability” and “shareability” of regular passwords, protecting against against these vulnerabilities without compromising usability. (I think I just set my personal record for the number of “-bilities” in once sentence).

Link to the PDF – “Passwords 2.0”