To hate how complicated verification has become online?

[antelopevalley]

Just been trying to add Microsoft authenticator onto my mobile phone to get into a training resource area. It has a number of stages including adding my password for my Microsoft account. I am not sure what this is but tried a few passwords but no joy and I can not reset the password without contacting my IT.

Now on hold to IT, for who knows how long. Where I will be patronised by young people who will clearly think I am stupid.

I am not trying to get into highly confidential files. I just want to see some slides from a training session I attended. It just seems ridiculous and total overkill.

AIBU? And if you live in Scotland, can you pop round and sort this out for me? Thanks.

I'm sure it's all very important and for out own safety etc but God this stuff can be such a ballache

Not knowing your password for your entire Microsoft account for work is not a result of things being too complicated online.

You're not stupid but your attitude to the problem (and to the people who will solve your problem for you) is poor. It's absolutely got to be the most basic thing in the world at work to know your password.

@Pumbles This is not the password I use to log into my PC. I use that every day.
And I use multiple passwords all the time.

This is all because you forgot your Microsoft password though, not things being complicated.
I know it’s not the password for your pc, that’s irrelevant.
Maybe keep your important passwords written down in a diary or something?

Hmmmm. I’m not sure that’s entirely fair.

i must have passwords for…..30/40/50 websites. Some call them passwords, digital keys, verification information, key information, memorable word / date / name / place etc. Not to mention that not all the usernames are consistent - you need email addresses, usernames assigned by you, usernames assigned by them, usernames entirely of numbers etc.

No, it’s not unreasonable to have to remember one password. But it is unreasonable to be judgmental about remembering one password out of about 100 pieces of information.

Then there’s 2 factor authentication which could be text / call / email / something on a work laptop involving a pop up from Citrix or somewhere.

Yes, you could use a password manager and i suspect that’s what most people do but if you don’t have your phone to hand which has the passwords on, you’re a bit fucked.

Yes. It increasingly feels like if you want to do anything online, once you have logged in you have to get a code sent to your phone, which will give you the coordinates to a scroll hidden in your garden which will have another password on it. Once logged in again with that password you then have to verify that you are a human by selecting the images that show traffic lights.

My passwords are kept on a sheet. But I have about fifty. It must have been updated at some point and I did not update it on the sheet.

I got it to send me a code instead and am in.
But this really is not simple. I have multiple passwords. I have three different types of authenticators on my mobile phone all for different software.

And yes the replies here are how IT treat me. As if I am a total thicko.

I had the same problem trying to register for online council tax. Asked me my phone number, apparently it didn't match - tried every number past and present I could think of, no joy - so no way to register without calling, just annoying.

I'm totally fine with strangers being able to access and pay my CT, no need to be so exclusive!

I also had to get by a verification asking me to type in different letters. I kept getting that wrong. I have some visual issues so struggle with these where the letters are in strange formations. I tried the audio and still got it wrong. A robotic voice that was hard to make out what it was saying. I did eventually get through that. But by god they make it tough.

The one that drives me mad is needing to receive a text message. There is no mobile reception in our house…

I think also this way of getting passwords and stuff is really alienating to older people / technophobes / people with additional needs. When often you need to set some stupidly secure password and an account just to download a brochure on a wedding venue or something

I hate it. One of the joys of my menopause is a shockingly poor memory. Just for my civil service job I have the following to remember:
Log in password for laptop
Microsoft password
Work mobile password
CTM travel password
Learning and Development password
Concur expenses password
HRnet password
Apple ID password

As well as banking passwords for three banks, utilities, social media, shopping, etc. The work mobile is the worst as it prompts me to change my pass code every two months, and I can't use one similar to a previous one. I've done all my memorable birthdays and even done them backwards. I'm at the end of my tether with it to be honest.

I think I might have typed my password wrongly into my mobile phone. When I started here all the passwords were stupidly simple. Not too far of 123456. I changed them all to really secure ones. But they can be a bugger to type into a phone.

I moved country so had to change my mobile number. Imagine how much fun all these MFA things have been now I can't do them - it's hard to change your phone number without being in the account, which I can't do because I can't use the number any more.

In addition to the code that gets sent to you phone now ( which often takes so long for me the whole thing times out and I have to start again) I now need to write my email address so it can recognise the way I write it. Just to buy some shorts for my son. It is all very frustrating and annoying! I honestly don’t know how elderly people non IT experts cope with it all. I bet they just don’t bother buying the thing in the first place or go to the shops

I haven't used my credit card for six months (no bad thing really) because I can't get anywhere near the system to enable me to authenticate myself. It is technically possible to do it but requires several steps, including a phone call, and I never have time to do it at the moment I think I want to use the card.

I really have some sympathy here - they tell you not to write down passwords but then they make passwords so bloody difficult that you end up needing to. I have a file that I keep all my passwords in - and password the file!

Can I add frustration with layers of banking security. I know it's for my own protection, I get that, but I have already signed in, put in a password, used a thumbprint to id myself and STILL get asked to enter a security code that they will text me!!! It is getting to the point where it takes me 10 minutes to get into my account to do something that takes 2 minutes!

This is the problem that the digital identity will solve. We will be crying out for it and then a handy chip to store it all that you can just wave to open your front door, pay for things, start your car, get into work.

Until you criticise the government online and then your chip won't work until you've done 20 hours of unpaid work and it unlocks again.

Social credits will then replace the fiat currency system, which is in full crash mode, and bam; the total control you only used to hear about from crazy conspiracy theorists.

I also think the layers of protection are nothing to do with protecting us the public. They are there to protect the banks so they can say well you transferred that money to that fraudster willingly as you had to go through 50 billion security checks to do so. And they can wash their hands of you if you are a victim of fraud.

I’m so with you. My card got decline because of unusual activity. AFTER I’d approved the transaction in the app.

Ive had to get a work mobile just to manage every fucker needing 2FA in case I get hit by a bus.

Right now I’d take a chip in my arm that I could scan.

uk.pcmag.com/password-managers/4296/the-best-password-managers

Your IT department will probably have a password manager they reccommend and can help you install.

I used to work on a helpdesk resetting passwords for people. It would annoy me endlessly when people called with the attitute that it was my fault/the fault of the IT dept that they had forgotten their password.

I actually don't remember ever having to use my microsoft password or anyone's microsoft password to access microsoft authenticator. It is normally your general work password i.e the one you use to access the systems in the morning.

@Frequency I tried the password I use every morning to log on and it did not accept it. This is part of the problem. I don't know what password it wants.

I lost my phone recently, couldn’t do a thing for a week because of double verification.

I think it’s a good idea but there needs to be a back up.

You think they’d have thought of that🤔

You can't even use landlines anymore for verification. We always used to use the office landline as that was more secure than a mobile phone that could be lost or get broken.