Google is looking to try and help users secure their passwords with a new feature that they are working on for their Chrome browser. Although the feature is still in development, it is expected that the end result of their development will result in a feature that will allow Chrome users to automatically generate strong passwords that could be used on various websites.
The way this password generator would work is if a user visits a website that Chrome believes is a new user account set-up page with a password field, Chrome will place an optional key within the password field of the registration form. The user will then have the option of either establishing their own password or alternatively, clicking on the key to have Chrome create a strong password. This password will have letters, numbers as well as special characters. Not only will this make it tougher for hackers to crack the password, but it will also make it next to impossible for the user to remember the password. After a random password has been generated, users will be given the option to approve the password and the reason behind this is because most websites maintain their own rules regarding password set-up and these rules will dictate password length and what characters can be used or not used. When a password is approved, it will be synchronized amongst all Chrome browsers that the user makes use of provided that he has enabled the synchronization feature within his Chrome account.
Google does acknowledge that there are some challenges to this random password generator feature. Ultimately, Google’s hope is that webpage sign in will be controlled through OpenID, but this is a service that not all websites subscribe to and it will take time for OpenID to make its way to more and more of these web properties. In addition to this, the Chrome password generator will only work with new accounts created after its release so it is not backwards compatible with other user names/passwords that someone might have. Then, there is also the issue that all passwords would be saved in a Chrome account so if your account is ever compromised, a hacker would have access to all of your passwords.
