Yahoo to the rescue of forgetful users with "on-demand password"

Passwords are not meant to be remembered. It is meant to be generated fresh, every time you forget it.

This is what Yahoo seems to think as the company just introduced an on-demand password system.

The system works like this: After signing into the Yahoo account one has to select Account security from the account information page and opt-in for “On-demand passwords”. Then one has to enter the phone number where Yahoo sends the verification code and after entering this code one never has to worry about memorizing passwords ever again.

It can be argued that the move away from default passwords is welcome as password theft is very common now a days but some feel that the privacy is being sacrificed because anybody with access to the phone for even a few seconds has the potential to read through all your communication.

But the fact remains that peril of default passwords had been dealt well with the two step authentication process; whereby if one logs in from a new device, in addition to the password one is asked for a code that has been sent to the associated mobile number. A move to completely eliminated the first step seems to be inclining towards laxer cyber-security norms.

At a time when Google tries to put one in panic mode by notifying what happens if you forget your password and repeated reports of security breaches makes one paranoid, the move from Yahoo to eliminate passwords has invited mixed reactions.

Presently, it is available only to US users.

While the effort is in the right direction to deal with password security issues by closely connecting the virtual and real identities, the approach adapted seems to be fallacious.