Microsoft teams with RSA on password protection

Quote:

---

Microsoft and computer security vendor RSA Security said Tuesday that they will jointly release a new authentication technology using RSA's SecurID tokens to provide better password protection into Windows operating systems.
RSA Security, known for its SecurID products that authenticate users logging into networks, said that the new offering would make it easier for businesses to protect their networks by providing tighter security at the point at which users enter their computer desktop.

"It's definitely going to first appeal to businesses," said Scott Schnell, vice president of marketing at Bedford, Massachusetts-based RSA Security.

Schnell said that corporate information technology departments would no longer have to adopt costly layers of authentication within their networks, such as separate passwords for expensing or Internet access, and could instead rely on a single user authenticated to a Windows program.

Windows, which runs on more than 90 percent of the world's personal computers, can be password protected, but up to now has never been integrated with a more stringent authentication system like SecurID.

Michael Atalla, a business development manager at Microsoft's security unit, said the new offering between Microsoft and RSA Security was a key step in Microsoft's two-year-old Trustworthy Computing initiative.

"Strong authentication is a fundamental security need," Atalla said.

The announcement between the two companies, which have also been working on authentication products, came at the start of RSA Security's annual security conference in San Francisco, where Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates is scheduled to deliver the keynote address.

The two companies said that the new authentication technology would be available to businesses in the September quarter, and that customers would be required to have Windows 2000, Windows XP or Windows Server 2003, along with the latest license and RSA Security software and tokens.

---

Source : http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105_2-516...=zdfd.newsfeed

This could actually be a good thing coming from MS teaming up with another company. A more secure login is always nice. Although I find mine quite adaquite(sp) for what I am doing..

-Cheers-

yup,

agreed. Props M$

This isn't surprising...they're both members of the Trusted Computing Group consortium and need one another (along with hardware/chipset manufacturers of which they are plenty) to further the initiative.

Call me an alarmist, but they're something not quite right about this information. I feel like specifics/details are being deliberately left out of the article.

The article makes mention of this effort being part of the Trustworthy Computing initiative, but doens't make specific mention of how it ties into the TCG specifications and standards. Also, the description of the technology is sparse...is this RSA's SecureID with different branding or a new technology that evolved from the MS-RSA collaboration but is based on SecureID? This also comes not too long after the big MS ASN vulnerability release by eEye which affected kerberos.

Does anyone have any detailed information re: the technology this topic outlines?

Cheers,
<0