FEATURE15 June 2017

A Security Brainwave

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Bronwen Morgan

Data analytics Features Impact Innovations Mobile Privacy Technology

Passwords are difficult to remember and easy to hack. Could brainwave and gait analysis hold the key to more secure data protection? By Bronwen Morgan

Woman-questioning

In 2016, technology news site ZDNet reported that there had been more than 3, 000 public data breaches, resulting in around 2.2bn records being stolen. This has led many experts to conclude that current approaches to data protection are out-dated and should be replaced by new methods of authentication. 

A study of IT decision-makers, carried out in the US last year, revealed that 69% of organisations said they were likely to do away with passwords within the next five years. Craig Lund, founder of security solutions provider SecureAuth – which commissioned the study – said: “On the heels of recent mega breaches such as Yahoo!, in which usernames, passwords and security-question responses were compromised, there’s a growing movement from individuals and businesses for an authentication overhaul. Single-factor, password-based authentication – and even many traditional two-factor approaches – are no longer enough in today’s increasingly digital world.”

Last year, UK bank Barclays announced it was introducing voice recognition ...