Chip making giant Intel has confirmed it will acquire PasswordBox, a Montreal-based vendor of cross-platform identity management solutions.
PasswordBox enables users a way to log into all of Web sites and applications from any device without having to type or remember passwords.
As a result of this acquisition, PasswordBox will become a part of the Safe Identity organization within Intel Security Group, formerly McAfee. The Safe Identity organization has been mandated to deliver solutions that reduce the pain of passwords, while improving the digital lives consumers, according to Renee James, Intel Security president and CEO.
According to a recent report by consulting firm Deloitte, more than 90 per cent of user-generated passwords are vulnerable to hacking, citing that the 10,000 most common passwords could access close to 98 per cent of all accounts.
Last year, Experian found that the average user had 26 password-protected online accounts but used only five different passwords.
And, nearly 37 per cent of users have asked for assistance on their username or password for at least one web site per month.
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Chris Young, senior vice president and GM of Intel Security, said everyone can relate to password fatigue. The PasswordBox service has already brought relief to millions of consumers who now enjoy simple, instant login.
“Intel Security and PasswordBox share the same goal of improving digital identity protection across all devices and platforms. We believe we have the technology, expertise and reach to bring simple, secure access to consumers worldwide,” he said in a prepared statement.
The plan for integrating PasswordBox into Intel Security will be in three areas:
- Reduced Password Fatigue – PasswordBox’s solution utilizes form fillers, with patent-pending one-tap (on mobile devices) and one-click (in browsers) login to provide secure access from any device.
- Security Simplified – Users are being asked to create increasingly complex passwords that include capital letters, numbers, and symbols to protect their digital identities, according to Intel Security. The company plans to incorporate the simplicity of the PasswordBox solution with new, user-friendly authentication technologies that enable users to get the benefit of improved security in a manner that is simple to set up and use.
- Experience Next Generation Solutions – Intel Security has assembled a team of hardware engineering, software and services people to build solutions that address the most pressing security challenges and will augment that with PasswordBox personnel.
Daniel Robichaud, CEO and co-founder of PasswordBox, said the company has spent the last two years building a product that people love, trust and use around the world every day. The company shares Intel Security’s vision of a simple, secure access for identity protection across all platforms and devices.
The privately held PasswordBox has 48 employees and was launched back in 2012 with the help of funding from OMERS Ventures. All current employees have joined Intel Security.