Friday, June 27, 2008

New Security Measure Announced

Blizzard have announced a new security measure for your World of Warcraft account. You will be able to buy a key fob size electronic device that generates a six digit pin number on the press of a button. Called an authenticator this device will cost $6.50 US and can be linked to one or more accounts. The authentication codes generated by this device are account specific, can only be used once and only functions for a limited time. This technology is similar to that provided by banks (a banking example device can be seen in the picture to the right) to secure online banking and will significantly decrease the chance of having your account stolen or hacked into and is a great step to providing players with a secure playing environment. Participation in this addition security measure is voluntary but I will be participating, $6.50 is a small price to pay to save yourself from the horror of login in to find yourself poor and naked.

You can view the official Blizzard press release here or have a look at the FAQ page on the device here.

Image from http://www.plm.automation.siemens.com

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I guess it's not going to be a physical device - more so a program...something like SecureID or something...I forget exactly as I've yet to have my morning caffiene...

I would have almost preferred the physical device though - kind of neat.

Ironarm said...

I'm pretty sure it will be a physical device. They now have a picture of it on their homepage.