Passwords and mobility

[Dave2002]

I am increasingly finding passwords a pain, and I'm not convinced that they should always be necessary on a website.

However passwords are necessary to protect private data, and also for sites where financial transactions are involved.

Passwords, or perhaps the lack of knolwege of them, can present problems while travelling, and sometimes also afterwards.

Two examples:

1. Google - including gmail

Google tries to protect users by checking roughly where they are connecting from. If this seems unusual, such as in a different country, a request for one's explicit passord will be sent. This may not seem unreasonable, but many of us now store passwords in multiple mobile devices, computers etc. Some of us rely on the device for the password, a technique which can break down when away from home. In the case of Google it may be necessary to answer several questions and reset the password if it is to be used while away. This, inevitably, means that all the other computers using the same account will now have the wrong password. The effects of this can be long lasting, for example with email clients not picking up email, and it may be necessary to get all the devices in one location, reset the password one more time, then go through all the devices setting that new password.

Thus using one mobile device abroad without being explicitly aware of the password might force a need to reset and change the password on several (perhaps as many as 5 or even more) devices on one's return.

2. Amazon

Forgetting one's Amazon password can make it difficult to purchase new items, or to access the Amazon player. As with Google, the password can be reset, but this will again require reset on multiple machines on returning home. A decision might be needed regarding the balance of convenience in favour of resetting the password to enable purchases or to listen to Amazon player while away versus the knowledge that such a reset will require further action on other machines later.

Spotify and other sites are sometimes also similar.

For security reasons I do not carry all my passwords with me, or have them stored in files on my computers, so if a device "forgets" a password this can have upsetting consequences while travelling, and sometimes the later effects can persist for a long time, particularly as many sites are linked and some sites get taken over by new owners.

Sometimes a program or app will "forget" passwords if there is a change in the system, or a system update, which also adds to the problems, and can be very disruptive.

[Quarky]

I agree passwords are a pain. But I think they always have been. In the days of WWI and WWII, I believe books, or some hardware object, were issued with passwords to be used for encipherment.

Certainly for financial transactions, where security is at a premium, and that would include Amazon and other card payment systems, I would only use my home PC which does not have WiFi enabled. So that saves me the necessity of carrying passwords to other locations.

But for non-critical sites such as FOR3 Forum, I tend to have a block of easily remembered theme related passwords.

Certainly I avoid storing personal info on laptop, tablet etc.

[Petrushka]

It isn't just the passwords you use at home but multiple ones at work as well. Then there are the various PIN numbers for debit/credit cards Impossible to remember them all and have to admit I've totally forgotten my credit card PIN. Just hope I never need to use it in a 'customer present' situation.

I know they tell you not to use the same password for several applications but, like Oddball, I do so for non-critical sites such as this one.

[Dave2002]

It isn't just the passwords you use at home but multiple ones at work as well. Then there are the various PIN numbers for debit/credit cards Impossible to remember them all and have to admit I've totally forgotten my credit card PIN. Just hope I never need to use it in a 'customer present' situation.

I know they tell you not to use the same password for several applications but, like Oddball, I do so for non-critical sites such as this one.

Then of course there are those extra passwords that some credit card companies impose for online purchases. They probably know it really is me because I nearly always have to ask for a new one!

You can ask your credit card company to send you a new PIN - most do this without too many worries.

What is scary is re-activating a card if you make too many mistakes in a shop. Some can be re-activated at ATMs, but you do have to know the PIN, otherwise I suspect the card would be retained.

[Ferretfancy]

Since we can all say what our favourite breed of dog is, or who our grandmother's second husband was, it ought surely to be possible for us to have one universal password for all transactions, backed by such security information.

The other day I bought a couple of electric razor cleaning brushes from a small supplier. I had to register to do this, and provide a password. On making the purchase I also had to do the same with the credit card company in order to verify and supply more security information. This for a couple of items costing a couple of quid, which were surprisingly difficult to hunt down elsewhere. The whole episode was a madness !