Twitter launched their new password-killer, called Digits, today. Digits is available to the public and devs can build it right into their apps and websites. What Digits does, is let users log into apps, websites, and services with their phone and a one-time use password. It looks like the two-factor authentication that’s currently built into Twitter, but it’s not integrated with the Twitter app. It’s a stand-alone service that has ties to Twitter, kind of like Vine. Digits bypasses OAuth and makes it really easy to log into an app or service, just with a single-use passcode that is texted to your phone. Just enter the passcode in the Digits window and you’ll be logged in.
Setting up Digits is simple. Twitter says that it only takes a couple of lines of code, whether you’re on the web or logging into a service on your phone. The service will help create a unified experience across devices. It will also make it easy to log into multiple services, as long as they all use Digits. “Digits login for web gives your users a powerful, single-log-in experience that also increases the conversion rate for your logins. Once a user has successfully authenticated via a website powered by Digits, Digits will intelligently omit SMS confirmation the next time the user logs into any other sites that are also powered by Digits. The result: users only have to log in on the web once to engage with all of your services, as well as other apps in the ecosystem.”
Twitter is also using Digits as a launching point for further development into apps, websites, and other services that can make user experience easier and more secure. The company wants user and developers to use Digits and do away with passwords, but they also want to build a platform of mobile services. Digits is designed specifically for mobile and it also works on the web. But Twitter doesn’t just want to be Twitter. Digits is the start of something bigger.