New system may spell end of accounts passwords

TORONTO: Researchers have developed a new system that logs your everyday activities and asks questions about them, offering a simpler way of logging in to your accounts than memorising passwords.

The system called ' narrative authentication' was developed by Carson Brown and colleagues at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada.

It uses software running in the background on a computer or smartphone to log your activities. The system can, for instance, note how long you spent playing a video game, which one it was and the time you stopped.

It also logs videos you posted to social networking sites and any check-ins you made on them, 'New Scientist' reported.

Users can also add their own events to the narrative, such as when they passed their driving test.

After being set up, the system will generate questions based on its records - making logging in a little like playing a text-based adventure game, Brown said.