Fergie's Tech Blog

VeriSign to Offer One-Time Passwords on Bank Cards

An AP newswire article by Anick Jesdanun, via ABC News, reports that:

A leading provider of digital-security services wants to make disposable passwords easier for consumers to accept by squeezing the technology into the corner of a regular credit or ATM card.

Fran Rosch, vice president for authentication services at VeriSign Inc., said the one-time passwords haven't taken off in the United States partly because consumers need to carry a small device that generates passwords on the fly. That barrier is removed, he said, by having the technology built into cards consumers already carry.

VeriSign was expected to announce a deal Tuesday with Innovative Card Technologies Inc. to outfit banks and e-commerce sites with cards that work with VeriSign's password system.

With the card, consumers logging on to an online bank account, for instance, would type in their regular username and password, along with a six-digit code that appears on the card's display window. That code constantly changes, meaning the customer needs to have possession of the card to access the account.

posted by Fergie @ 4/30/2007 10:38:00 PM