{"id":6114,"date":"2015-11-13T12:00:19","date_gmt":"2015-11-13T12:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.markwilson.co.uk\/blog\/?p=6114"},"modified":"2015-11-13T00:41:43","modified_gmt":"2015-11-13T00:41:43","slug":"windows-hello","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.markwilson.co.uk\/blog\/2015\/11\/windows-hello.htm","title":{"rendered":"Banish passwords and unlock your PC with Windows Hello"},"content":{"rendered":"

Passwords are so old-fashioned. And insecure. Often,\u00a0after\u00a0a high profile website hack we’re asked to change our passwords because most people use the same password for multiple services. So, what’s the answer? Well, not using the same password for multiple sites might be one solution but that leads to problems with remembering passwords (which is why I use a password manager).\u00a0Others think the solution lies in biometrics (and I’d certainly consider that as a second factor).<\/p>\n

Windows 10 has an interesting new feature called Windows Hello<\/a>. Rather than relying on a password, or a PIN (which is ultimately the same thing, once it’s been hashed…), Hello uses facial recognition to determine whether you can have access to a PC or not – and I’ve been testing it for a few weeks now.<\/p>\n

Actually, we have two PCs in our house that can use Windows Hello: my wife’s Lenovo E550 (using\u00a0the fingerprint reader or optional 3D camera); and the Lenovo B50 All-in-one PC I have on loan also includes the 3D camera that is required for facial recognition\u00a0(iris readers will soon be available too). And in case you’re reading this and getting\u00a0worried about a copy of your face being shared around the Internet, Hello’s facial recognition uses infra-red technology with the\u00a0camera to capture data points (a kind of graph of your face) rather than a picture itself and the data never leaves the PC (where it is stored in encrypted form – you can read more in Microsoft’s Windows Hello privacy FAQ<\/a>). \u00a0In essence,\u00a0you have possession of a device; you unlock it with your face (or other biometrics); and then Windows Hello authenticates on your behalf but your biometric information is never transferred.<\/p>\n

I was a bit confused at first to find that Hello was not available on the\u00a0B50, until I discovered that the OOTB drivers were not up to the task – once I’d installed the Intel RealSense\u00a0Depth Camera Manager (DCM) drivers<\/a>, Windows was happy to learn how my face looks and Windows Hello jumped into life.<\/p>\n

“So, what’s it actually like to use?”, you might ask.<\/p>\n

Setup is just a case of following\u00a0a wizard to let Windows recognise your face and after that it’s really, really\u00a0straightforward.<\/p>\n

\"Windows\u00a0\"Windows\u00a0\"Windows\u00a0\"Windows\u00a0\"Windows<\/p>\n

Just make sure you look directly at the PC (no slurping a cuppa whilst waiting for it to recognise you).<\/p>\n

\n

Playing with Windows Hello #PrettyCool<\/a> #Windows10<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/O2V7dgNIJI<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Mark Wilson (@markwilsonit) September 22, 2015<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n