How password protection has changed

There was a time when only secret agents or gate guards would need a password, to recognise an ally or control entry into a protected area.

Even then, passwords needed to be managed - recorded and controlled - so that they could be changed as they become overheard and compromised.

As access to computers increased, so did the the need for passwords. MIT had a shared computer in 1961 with multiple users, so they each had their own identifying password which was stored on the system.

Just one year later a researcher found a way to print off the list of passwords and became the world’s first hacker, kicking off a war between IT security and hacking that called for new forms of password management.

What is a password manager?

Nowadays everyone has passwords to remember, and not just one or two. The average UK worker is estimated to need nearly 200 passwords for different accounts. That’s a lot for one person to remember without writing them down somewhere.

Back in the day, anything from notebooks to sticky notes kept in a drawer were used to protect our most precious assets - our money and very identities.

Not only did (do?) we store our passwords insecurely but we tend to reuse the same old, memorable ones - 1234, “Password1”, “Rover” after your favourite pet. We’re putting our money and our lives at risk because if a cyber criminal gains access to just one of your online accounts, they could possibly get into all of them.

Password management software - storing all of your passwords together

Password managers were developed to combine convenience and protection. Traditionally, password management software lets you gain access to your passwords by storing them in an encrypted database, or “vault”. But it’s only ever a matter of time before hackers and malware break through that encryption to get to your valuable information.

forghetti - doing away with password storage

At forghetti we got fed up with the whole password remembering problem but didn’t like the idea of storing our passwords anywhere, so we came up with a new solution that doesn’t store passwords but keeps the convenience of recalling them when you need them.

Using the forghetti app you can generate long and extremely complicated passwords for every online account you own and then forget about them forever.

To gain entry to an account, you use a simple doodle on your keypad that only you know. This initiates a massively complex set of algorithms to generate and regenerate the password.

You don’t store your passwords and neither do we. Not only do you enjoy greater online security but you get to save your memory for more important things.

To find out more about how forghetti works, take a look at our website forghetti.com.

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