A comparison of password techniques

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Authors
Beedenbender, Mark G.
Subjects
Information system security
authentication
user identification
passwords
cognitive passwords.
Advisors
Haga, William J.
Date of Issue
1992-03
Date
March 1990
Publisher
Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School
Language
en_US
Abstract
A widely used access control mechanism is the password. Passwords are normally composed of a meaningful detail, such as a name of a person or a sequence of numbers such as birthdate. Any person attempting to gain unauthorized access to a system might need only to look at a personnel record or associate with the person holding the desired password in order to discover the password. Therefore, there is a compromise between user memorability and security of a system. Exploration into other methods of user authentication and access control is desired to discover a better alternative to the traditional password system. The alternative are system-generated passwords, pronounceable passwords, passphrases, cognitive passwords and authentication by word association. These methods are discussed and examined. The results from this study show that cognitive passwords and authentication by word association are superior to other methods in access control.
Type
Thesis
Description
Series/Report No
Department
Department of Administrative Sciences
Organization
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Identifiers
NPS Report Number
Sponsors
Funder
Format
v, 79 p. ; ill.
Citation
Distribution Statement
Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.
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