Usability advocates will argue that strong device passwords on mobile devices are annoying and won't be accepted by users. That's a fair argument -- strong passwords on a smartphone or tablet really are a hassle to work with. (Trust me.) Still, I'd prefer something stronger than four-digit PINs to unlock a device (and the data it holds). For the longer term, device vendors need to be shooting for stronger keying mechanisms -- perhaps a PIN in combination with a biometric like a fingerprint, facial pattern scan or voice recognition.See also:
For now, though, what I suggest to people who are serious about the security of their mobile devices is...
Mobile Devices and Biometric Modalities
For other mobile posts, click the 'mobile' label in the list in the footer to this post below. Does anyone but me ever use those?
