If you've used Windows 8, or even just seen the ads for it, you'll know it has a feature called Picture Passwords.
You choose a picture, any picture, and then "annotate" it with three finger movements: you can tap a point, draw a stroke, or sweep a circle.
The picture helps you to remember where you made the gestures, so you can repeat them reliably enough to pass the test and unlock your device.
If you have a touch screen tablet, Picture Passwords are surprisingly handy. (Pun intended.)
But how safe are they?
One of the ads I've seen for Windows 8 made a pretty big deal out of the coolness of Picture Passwords, and illustrated their convenience with a login sequence to which my immediate reaction was, "Surely not?"
The ad showed a picture of someone's two young daughters, heads close together and looking at some distant object; the password involved circling their heads and then drawing a line in the direction they were looking.
That struck me as far, far too easily guessed; a bit like an ad showing someone choosing the keyboard password SECRET and implying that would be good enough.
Full Article
Login to the community
No account yet? Create an account
Enter your username or e-mail address. We'll send you an e-mail with instructions to reset your password.