I Lost My Password, Now What?

I think you’ve been in the situation before.  Most sites have a forgot my password option.  This process works reasonably well, but its still painful.  Another alternative is to create a new account.  I think this is the most painful option of the two.

Until we fix the password problem, you may want to think about a password journal.  This is a low tech solution, but can ease the pain with losing a password.

I saw this article on TechnologyReview.  A consortium including PayPal and Lenovo are looking to reduce the importance of passwords but still use them with two factor authentication.  This is a step in the right direction security wise, but it only masks the problems with passwords.

Google has an idea that makes sense to fix this problem.  Its involves using a USB key.  Check out the video below for a full explanation.

I really like how companies recognize the problems with passwords.  Two factor authentication is more secure, but more burdensome on the user.  Eliminating passwords all together is the real solution to this problem.  Have you been burned recently by losing your password?  If so, I would love to hear about it.

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