Two factor authentication made easy

Abstract

Authentication on the Web is a challenge that can have a negative effect on user experience if it becomes overly complicated and cumbersome. This experience is even more crucial for older and visually impaired users due to their functional abilities. Web applications typically authenticate users by requesting for information that only the user knows (e.g. password). To enhance security, two-factor authentication (2FA) are increasingly implemented, which require the user to manually transfer information between 2FA devices and the Web application. This process can impose usability barriers and stress on human’s memory. This paper proposes a technique to mitigate such issues by using wearables as the 2FA device, and to allow authentication information to be transferred seamlessly and automatically from the device to the Web application. From our preliminary results, older users found our approach less stressful on the human’s memory and easier to use.