Services hope to provide passport to peace of mind
• Passport urges people to sign up
By John Yaukey
Gannett News Service
It happens to anyone who uses the Internet regularly: password saturation. Your mind can no longer retain another password, user name, ID number, credit card number, entry code or any of the other alphanumeric brandings that have come to identity us in the digital world.
This hasn't been lost on Microsoft and many of the other major companies that bring you the Internet or try to sell you something over it. They're busy rolling out major new services designed to help make the Internet do most of the heavy lifting. Think of it: all your tedious personal information — from passwords to credit card numbers — stored on a central server somewhere waiting to pop up whenever you need it.
It sounds convenient.
But then why is veteran Microsoft user Joel Spolsky so reluctant to use the software giant's offering aptly dubbed Passport?
"Passport is not without its advantages,'' the New York City resident conceded. "But they're just not worth what you risk. Microsoft doesn't have a great reputation for protecting this kind of personal information. And if it's there on a Microsoft server, of course they're going to exploit it — mine for any number of things — the possibilities are endless. This is standard operating procedure for Microsoft.''
Just another "Microphobe''?
Actually, he's part of a chorus. Analysts who have surveyed Netizens have reached the same conclusion: services like Passport are probably the wave of the future, but they're just not ready for prime time yet.
"There just isn't enough to recommend these services yet,'' said Avivah Litan, who analyzes services like Passport for the Gartner research firm. "They've still got a ways to go before they're really compelling to consumers.''
Microsoft is blazing the trail into what's being called the "identity authentication'' space, but it's hardly playing solo. AOL Time Warner, American Express and more than two dozen other major companies have plans to roll out identity services under the umbrella name "Liberty Alliance'' using protocols and software yet to be announced. But odds are, it will work much like Passport.
Passport allows users to round up all the personal information they use on the Web and store it with, who else? Microsoft.
So far, more than 100 major online retailers are participating in Passport, which is to say they're accepting the Passport identity authentication and personal information such as credit card numbers for making purchases. Participants include 1-800-Flowers.com, Buy.com (buy.com) , the travel site Expedia (expedia.com), Godiva (godiva.com), RadioShack (radioshack.com), Victoria's Secret (victoriassecret.com), Wine.com (wine.com) and other familiar names.
Microsoft has not been subtle about trying to get people to sign up with Passport.
If you use the software giant's new XP operating system, you've been subjected to a barrage of advertising built into the software.
In some cases, you have no choice but to join Passport. XP includes an instant-messaging system that requires Passport registration. Sign up for a free Hotmail e-mail account and you've registered for Passport even though you haven't provided any personal data like a credit card number (this helps Microsoft inflate membership numbers so more merchants will sign on).
Down the road, Microsoft sees Passport as a key feature of a much larger Web-services strategy called .Net, which will offer online calendar, address book and bill payment options by storing virtually all of your personal information on Microsoft servers.
Complicating the picture are a handful of financial services trying to promote e-commerce with their own authentication and payment options.
Last year, Visa (visa.com) rolled out "Verified by Visa,'' while MasterCard is (mastercard.com) preparing to launch an online verification system of its own.
Meanwhile, PayPal (paypal.com), which allows people who join to send money to each other and merchants, is looking to expand with a stock offering.
In theory, any one of these services could simplify your life online. But they are not without potential risks and complications.
Before you sign up, consider:
• Security. More than a dozen public-interest groups have filed a complaint with federal regulators arguing that Passport poses worrisome privacy questions. Late last year, a security flaw was discovered in Passport, which, if exploited by a hacker, would have exposed Passport's wallet data, which contains credit card numbers.
According to InfoSec, an information security news Web site, Passport "trades off security in favor of convenience in a way that leaves users vulnerable.''
Conclusion: Passport is yet another example of Microsoft releasing software with troubling security vulnerabilities that it attempts to fix with patches after the fact.
• Dependability. If Microsoft's Passport servers go down, so does your access to the personal information you've stored on them.
• Microsoft has said it "will not mine, target, sell or publish any (Passport) user data without explicit user consent.''
Anyone who thinks Microsoft isn't going to "monetize'' Passport personal data as aggressively as it can, is ignoring two decades of some of the most envelop-pushing capitalism this side of Enron. Microsoft has yet to convince consumers it has only their interests in mind when gathering personal data.
• Despite the above-mentioned merchants that are participating in Passport, Gartner reports Microsoft has been slow in getting enough e-tail sites to sign on to make the e-shopping services compelling to consumers.
• Payment services such as "Verified by Visa'' can add an additional level of security. But they can also be complex to use. The new service MasterCard is rolling out, for example, would require users to download special software.
• Payment services like PayPal are not regulated as closely as banks, which can result in poor service, especially in the event of a mishap. According to the Better Business Bureau, PayPal had a backlog of 100,000 unanswered complaints against it last year.
All that said, Passport and other services like it are here to stay. If you're active on the Web, you'll probably eventually use one.
But until you feel the need, what's the hurry?
