A newly launched open source project aims to help users safely store their online security credentials, particularly long, complex passwords. The project aims to combine hardware and software to solve the problems caused by users selecting insecure passwords, according to Mathieu Stephan, an electronics engineer at encryption vendor ID Quantique who will head the as-yet-unnamed project. The goal is to help users generate long, complex random passwords for the different websites they regularly access, which helps protect the user’s information from being compromised. Recent analysis of stolen passwords shows people are not good at selecting their own passwords, which makes them vulnerable to data or identity theft. The project seeks community input throughout the development of the device. As planned, the new technology will include a smart card and a device—able to store Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)-256-encrypted passwords and keys to help users secure their online credentials—that users can connect to a computer via USB. (SlashDot)(Hackaday)(IEEE Computer News Feed – December 2, 2013)
Friday, December 20, 2013
Open Source Project Tackles Secure Password Storage
