[HN Gopher] In Memoriam: Forgetting Your Password
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       In Memoriam: Forgetting Your Password
        
       Author : FeaturelessBug
       Score  : 22 points
       Date   : 2022-07-21 07:31 UTC (1 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.wired.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.wired.com)
        
       | ComputerCat wrote:
       | Interesting read. I think something that bothers me more than
       | trying to remember passwords (I have a system) is when an app or
       | website won't let you see what you've typed! It's so easy to make
       | a typo, especially on a phone and nothing infuriates me more than
       | that "wrong password" message popping up when I can't even view
       | what letters/numbers I've typed in before hitting enter.
        
         | bombcar wrote:
         | This is one of the most misguided security features - in some
         | cases in public places maybe. But anywhere else let me at least
         | see what I've typed (or as the iPhone does show me at least the
         | last character as I type it).
        
         | aimor wrote:
         | I still run into arbitrary password limitations (no special
         | characters, 20 character max, etc). I go through the "reset
         | password" process just to see what arcane rules I had to
         | follow, which is enough to help me remember my password so I
         | can log in.
        
           | FeaturelessBug wrote:
           | I seriously have to reset passwords every 2-3 days for
           | different websites AND I use a password manager. It's
           | maddening and embarrassing and sometimes it feels like
           | someone is playing a mean joke on me
        
         | detritus wrote:
         | It's not ideal, but you can just open up your browser tools and
         | change the input type from 'password' to 'text' so you can see
         | what you're doing.
         | 
         | Tricky on a phone though... .
        
           | graftak wrote:
           | On iOS you can do this with an extension called Web
           | Inspector. It's quite literally what the name suggests,
           | albeit more limited than its desktop counterparts.
        
       | liberia wrote:
       | Will a 'passwordless future' gain traction though? I keep hearing
       | the term 'passwordless' but right now it's a niche thing with
       | only techie types early adopting it. I own a Yubikey and use
       | WebAuthn where it's supported. But only some services support
       | WebAuthn. For this to take off it needs to be ubiquitous and
       | widely supported. Also this article says people won't be locked
       | out, but if you lose your Yubikey you need some recovery
       | mechanism in place, and not all services support a 'recovery
       | code' option meaning you have to contact support, verify your
       | identity with a passport scan and other KYC checks.
        
       | johnnypangs wrote:
       | Blocked by a pay wall, here's a web archive link:
       | 
       | https://web.archive.org/web/20220525180921/https://www.wired...
        
       | longrod wrote:
       | Let's just get rid of user accounts altogether. We started
       | wanting to get rid of emails then got insecure about our
       | passwords...all in the quest of anonymity and security.
       | 
       | 99% of us don't get hacked. 99% of us are ignored by everyone in
       | the world. But we care about our privacy nonetheless. And we care
       | because all these services are after data they don't need at all.
       | 
       | It's so annoying when during sign up for a service you are asked
       | to provide company name, country, phone number, email, full name,
       | date of birth, password etc. Does a reality exist where I just
       | won't have to sign up at all?
       | 
       | Accounts are portals into the always connected digital world. In
       | effect their only use is to connect a piece of information to
       | you. Is it impossible to do that in a completely anonymous way?
        
       | jdeisenberg wrote:
       | If your face becomes your password, what happens if you are in an
       | accident and get a broken nose, lose a couple of teeth, and get
       | some stitches? Will you be locked out until you heal? If there's
       | permanent damage to your facial structure, how do you "reset your
       | password"? (I will admit I have not done a thorough survey of the
       | existing literature; I'm guessing others have thought of this
       | problem and it has long since been solved.)
        
         | mewse-hn wrote:
         | I refuse to use any FaceID system but the fingerprint scanner
         | on an iphone is just a quick-access unlock vs a manually
         | entered passcode/password. Eg. if you lose your thumb that
         | unlocks your cellphone you can still enter your full length
         | password and reconfigure the biometrics.
         | 
         | Seems like this article is about a new consortium trying to do
         | global single sign on and is selling it as "no more passwords!"
        
         | evilduck wrote:
         | The article isn't stellar about explaining what they mean.
         | FaceID and TouchID as implemented by Apple requires you to type
         | in your password every couple of days to ensure you don't
         | forget it. They augment your password (and weaken overall
         | security) but they don't replace your password. I can't speak
         | to every similar Android and Windows implementations, but I
         | charitably assume they've followed the same path, Google Pixels
         | have at least.
         | 
         | So to answer your question specifically for an iPhone, if
         | you're using FaceID and get in a face-mangling accident, you
         | type in your password until your face heal enough to stop
         | changing and then set up FaceID again with your new mug.
        
       | latchkey wrote:
       | > Disclosure: I do not have a password manager
       | 
       | Written by someone who writes articles for a tech mag and doesn't
       | use a password manager?
       | 
       | Thanks to my use of a password manager for many many years now, I
       | don't know any of my passwords at all. I guess I've already
       | failed. Before we start worrying about BigCo helping us log in,
       | let's at least get the basics correct first.
        
         | sircastor wrote:
         | I use a password manager and recently ran into an issue where I
         | couldn't remember the passcode for my iPhones guided access
         | that I set for my kid. I managed to guess it, but it expresses
         | the fundamental problem of actually adding and managing the
         | passwords, in spite of not knowing what they are.
        
           | spicymaki wrote:
           | I would write down passwords like that. Put them in a notepad
           | and secure it physically (unless you are under state
           | surveillance of course).
        
             | naniwaduni wrote:
             | I would be more concerned about being surveilled by the
             | adversary with routine physical access to you.
             | 
             | "Write it down physically" is great in typical threat
             | models where you have mostly network adversaries, but this
             | _particular_ situations is a bit
        
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       (page generated 2022-07-22 23:02 UTC)