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title: The Biometric Tech That Could Kill The Password | TIME
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# The Biometric Tech That Could Kill The Password

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<!-- video src="https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/6qWzRYmp.m3u8" -->
## Video: The Biometric Tech That Could Kill The Password

[Watch (HLS stream): The Biometric Tech That Could Kill The Password](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/6qWzRYmp.m3u8) (2:13)

![The Biometric Tech That Could Kill The Password](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/6qWzRYmp/poster.jpg?width=720)

_Published 2015-03-17. Many companies and tech manufacturers are now turning to biometrics for verification — utilizing your hands, face, even your voice — to log you in._


---

Jul 27, 2023 6:03 PM UTC

---

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---


## Transcript

The sheer number of hacks in recent years would tell you the humble password is probably due for the technology scrapheap. It's replacement? Well that might be something slightly more unique. Hello Mr. Yakamoto, welcome back to the GAP. Try your body. Many companies and tech manufacturers are now turning to biometrics for verification. Utilizing your hands, face, even your voice to log you in. Let's start with those hands. Apple is one of the biggest names to go the fingerprint route. It launched Touch ID back in 2013 with the iPhone 5S. With just a touch of your home button, the Touch ID sensor quickly reads your f -.

Fingerprinting automatically unlocks your phone. And other companies are embracing that same hands- on approach. In February, the U. K. 's Nadwest Bank and the Royal Bank of Scotland utilizes touch ID to give their users account access at the touch of a button. Next up, your face, specifically your smiling facing. Just this past Sunday, Alibaba's Jack Ma introduced a facial recognition payment system called Smile to Pay. Basically, go to pay for an item on your phone, show it your pearly whites when it asks. It matches a selfie on file. And you're good to go. And, finally, your voice. In another case of banks moving towards biometrics, USAA announced last month it would allow a combination of voice recognition and facial recognition for its users to access accounts.

Clearly, some reputable companies jumping on the biometrics bandwagon. But, is it really that much safer than the collection of letters and characters you have now? Some aren't convinced. Specifically Slate argues the permanence of biometric patterns is a potential problem. When your fingerprints are stolen, there is no reset. They are permanent identification markers, and one snagged by hackers is out of your control forever. And there are other approaches to the password problem as well, namely two step verification. Where by you would see your password and a second password to censor you. Yahoo wrote out a similar system this week, but cut out a step.

Instead, users can opt to have a different password censor them every time they want to log in. Whether any of these methods are safer than traditional passwords is up for debate, but if it means not having to worry about forgetting your password, something tells us they might catch on.

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