Considering how many info we’re sharing over the internet these days, and the fact that our smartphones have become placeholders for all sorts of personal info, security is an imperative. Our smartphones are more or less secure, but nobody can guarantee anything, it is always possible that you will be the victim of a malware or something of the sort. There are a number of ways to prevent not only that, but others from accessing the info on your device in case your phone gets stolen, and fingerprint scanners are definitely one of the ways you can do it. Fingerprint scanning sensors have become really popular in the smartphone world in 2015, and a ton of mid-range devices actually feature such sensors, not to mention the high-end ones. Well, it seems like all sorts of new security-based features will be available for devices in 2016, and the new study actually shares some info on what’s going on today, and what’s next, read on.
According to Juniper Research’s study, Mobile Network Operators will generate an additional $700 million annually by 2020 from the new universal log-in and mobile identity services. This study actually claims that a password-based method used nowadays is not the best option, and that it’s time to step it up. The study says that the vast majority of users use same e-mails / usernames and password on multiple sites, which increases the risk altogether. The research that was done by Juniper Research, points to significant increases in data breaches by 2020. There were less than 5,000 data breaches this year, and Juniper Research claims that we’ll see more than 16,000 (a year) by 2020. This is a serious problem is if the study is at all accurate, and it seems like companies are trying to avoid such problems by introducing new security measures and improving existing ones.
Juniper Research claims that the approaches GSMA’s Mobile Connect Initiative is endorsing are a way better solution than what we’re dealing with nowadays. What’s this all about? Well, a security measure Juniper mentions in the study, actually comes down to logging in via a mobile number and a single PIN code. Juniper Research claims that this would bring a number of benefits to the consumer, including far better security, of course. ”It is imperative to reduce online user pain points: enabling a single, secure mode of entry could be a key development in this regard,” said Dr. Windsor Holden. Now, the aforementioned approach is still not fully established, and it wouldn’t be free, which is an obstacle at the moment. We’ll see what happens next, but if we get to see more security breaches a year, solutions like this will certainly come to life at some point.