By It seems Google is looking to make it easier for you to verify your identity when signing into your account from an untrusted PC. The company has started inviting lucky users to test it.
Here’s a quick rundown on how it works:
- You sign into your Google account from a PC and use the sign-in from phone option.
- A prompt on your phone pops up and asks you if you’re trying to sign into that PC. Selecting yes logs you in, selecting no doesn’t. (You can opt to sign in using your password instead.)
- You’re in.
Easy as that. Note that you do need a compatible phone, and that phone must have its screen lock mechanism enabled to ensure security. So, you’re probably wondering how or why this is useful. One of the benefits is that it’ll help you save a little time typing your password in, especially if it’s a long password. It might not save so much time that this is considered a killer feature, but it’s nice.
So, you’re probably wondering how or why this is useful. One of the benefits is that it’ll help you save a little time typing your password in, especially if it’s a long password. It might not save so much time that this is considered a killer feature, but it’s nice.
But the other big benefit is that it shields you from the horrors of things like keyloggers (spyware which tracks what you type so it can get access to your sensitive information). It’d be paranoid to suggest that every public computer you use has a keylogger installed, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry and this is the perfect solution for worrywarts.
Unfortunately we’re not sure how long it’ll take Google to launch this feature for everyone, but the fact that they’re inviting users to test it means it shan’t be long before the rest of us are able to get in on it. Let us know if this is something that could be useful to you in your day-to-day.
[via Reddit]
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