# Passwords still have a role to play in personal finance
Author:  Pal Sinha, Barnali 
Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali
Published: 2016-06-02
Category: BUSINESS
Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/business
Meta Title: The Future of Biometric Authentication Technology in the
Meta Description: Discover how biometric technology has transformed the way we authenticate ourselves online, from fingerprint scans to voice recognition and beyond. Learn about
URL: https://financedigest.com/passwords-still-have-a-role-to-play-in-personal-financehtml

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_**Bill Carey** is Vice President of Marketing & Business Development at_ [_RoboForm_](http://www.roboform.com/)

Back in 2005, when I first started working in the password management industry, the internet was only around 5% of the size it is now. But even then it was clear that the internet was still in its’ infancy.  . What occurred to me at the time was that people would soon reach a [point where they simply wouldn’t be able to recall the range of unique](https://www.financedigest.com/digitally-projected-revenue-to-be-the-unique-selling-point-of-aerosol-therapy-market.html "Digitally projected revenue to be the unique selling point of Aerosol Therapy Market") passwords for each of the websites they accessed. This is why I saw such an opportunity in password management, and the ability to have one secure password that would unlock all the others.

However, many companies saw it differently, most notably those [working on biometric authentication](https://www.financedigest.com/get-real-how-to-be-your-authentic-self-at-work.html "Get real: How to be your authentic self at work") solutions. They viewed this rapid proliferation of internet usage as an opportunity to revolutionise the way we log into our computers, websites, and business applications. The future of authentication as portrayed in futuristic films, with fingerprint scans, voice recognition and retina readers dominating our everyday lives, appeared imminent.

However, what quickly became clear was that the devices being [developed at that time were not yet ready for widespread application](https://www.financedigest.com/turbo-compounding-systems-market-development-status-competition-analysis-type-and-application-2026.html "Turbo Compounding Systems Market Development Status, Competition Analysis, Type and Application 2026"). For that reason I continued down the password manager route, with [confidence that the sci-fi era](https://www.financedigest.com/instilling-customer-confidence-in-the-pandemic-era.html "Instilling customer confidence in the pandemic era") of authentication had not yet arrived.

Fast forward to today and people are still talking about biometrics which is [growing in popularly](https://www.financedigest.com/growing-popularity-of-horseback-riding-to-bolster-sales-of-hoof-boots-market-fact-mr-report.html "Growing Popularity of Horseback Riding to Bolster Sales of Hoof Boots Market: Fact.MR Report"), particularly in the finance sector. Recently a number of [banks](https://www.financedigest.com/open-finance-and-smart-ecosystems-wont-wait-for-banks.html "Open Finance and Smart Ecosystems Won’t Wait for Banks") and financial services organisations have been dabbling in the biometric space, largely in an attempt to create a superior customer experience to their competitors. In February, HSBC launched voice recognition and touch security services in the UK, a service that will be offered to 15 [million customers](https://www.financedigest.com/crypto-broker-genesis-owes-geminis-customers-900-million-ft.html "Crypto broker Genesis owes Gemini’s customers 0 million – FT").  The bank’s head of retail banking and [wealth management](https://www.financedigest.com/annual-survey-of-wealth-managers-2022.html "Annual Survey of Wealth Managers 2022"), Francesca McDonagh has called it “the largest planned rollout of voice biometric security technology in the UK.”

Similarly, earlier this year MasterCard confirmed that it will accept selfie photos and fingerprints as an alternative to passwords from customers verifying IDs for [online payments](https://www.financedigest.com/online-payment-gateway-market-to-witness-a-cagr-of-10-3.html "Online Payment Gateway Market to witness a CAGR of 10.3%"). Atom Bank, the new digital-only [bank launched](https://www.financedigest.com/exclusive-china-regulator-launches-new-probe-into-banks-property-loan-exposure-sources.html "Exclusive-China regulator launches new probe into banks’ property loan exposure – sources") in the UK recently announced that it will be using face and voice recognition technology to allow customers to log in to their accounts. Clearly, [established and new financial brands](https://www.financedigest.com/2016-the-fight-back-of-the-established-brand.html "2016 – THE FIGHT BACK OF THE ESTABLISHED BRAND") alike are gambling heavily on biometric technology as a way to better serve their customers.

However, while the years have passed and the Internet has evolved, I would argue that the [challenges faced](https://www.financedigest.com/factbox-the-challenges-automakers-and-now-tesla-face-with-humanoid-robots.html "Factbox-The challenges automakers, and now Tesla, face with humanoid robots") by biometrics a decade ago are still remarkably similar.

Chief among them is simply the human factor – for better or worse, most of us just [don’t value our security](https://www.financedigest.com/dont-let-the-promises-of-virtual-desktop-security-cloud-your-judgement.html "Don’t let the promises of virtual desktop security cloud your judgement") over our convenience. Biometrics may be secure, but we have yet to find a way to create fingerprint scanners and other pieces of technology that are simple and reliable enough to be used by a mass audience.

Further, in my opinion there’s an even more basic issue that the biometric [industry has to solve before you’ll see](https://www.financedigest.com/industrial-agitators-market-to-see-incredible-growth-during-2019-2027.html "Industrial Agitators Market to See Incredible Growth During 2019-2027") widespread adoption of biometric devices.  After each of the various [data breaches](https://www.financedigest.com/amazons-twitch-blames-configuration-error-for-data-breach.html "Amazon’s Twitch blames configuration error for data breach") that have occurred over the past couple of years at companies such as Carphone Warehouse, Ashley Madison, and financial brands such as JPMorgan Chase, the advice from the compromised company and security experts alike is to change your password. While this is a bit of an inconvenience for most of us, it is not the end of the world, particularly if you use a password management solution.

However, this is something you simply can’t do if you are using biometrics.  Indeed, the primary [selling point](https://www.financedigest.com/digitally-projected-revenue-to-be-the-unique-selling-point-of-surgical-chisels-market.html "Digitally projected revenue to be the unique selling point of Surgical Chisels Market") of biometric products is that they cannot be changed. Your eyes and fingerprints are unique to you, and unfortunately that uniqueness comes at a price. If your biometric data is compromised, it is permanently lost to hackers, and cannot be changed.

It is pointless to argue about which [security solution](https://www.financedigest.com/securing-financial-institutions-with-the-help-of-pam-solutions.html "Securing financial institutions with the help of PAM solutions") is the ‘best’. As I see it, the [future lies](https://www.financedigest.com/the-future-of-financial-services-lies-in-hyperautomation.html "The Future of Financial Services Lies in Hyperautomation") in individuals using a range of security authentication options in combination, with each one working to cover the weaknesses of the other. This is referred to as ‘multifactor authentication’, and comes in three parts:

- Something you have – such as a piece of hardware or software
- Something you know – such as a password, or answer to a security question
- Something you are – such as a fingerprint or retina scan

Rather than trying to present a [particular technology](https://www.financedigest.com/increasing-private-and-public-investment-in-digital-imaging-technology-particularly-in-the-field-of-healthcare.html "Increasing private and public investment in digital imaging technology particularly in the field of healthcare") as the Holy Grail of security, and a replacement of the password, I think we should be educating internet users about the benefits of multifactor authentication. Ultimately, using more than one factor will certainly increase a user’s security, no matter how secure a single factor may appear to be.

Passwords aren’t going away anytime soon. While it is certain that we will continue to see new biometric technologies enter the marketplace, each offering a new way to access our computers, apps and websites, passwords will continue to be a part of the multifactor process. It was true back in 2005 and it will continue to be true for many [years to come](https://www.financedigest.com/veterinary-tables-market-rise-to-meet-large-demand-in-coming-years-fact-mr-study.html "Veterinary Tables Market Rise To Meet Large Demand In Coming Years, Fact.MR Study").


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