Fingerprint 'password'

I've just discovered that you can buy a device to attach to your computer that will enable you to use your print instead of all passwords. Does anyone have any experience of using this system? And how does it work to change an existing password?

Had experience of finger print sensors on laptops which allowed login using either finger print or password.
Changing password usually required the existing password to be entered as is usual practice before entering the new password.

My partner messed up her online banking access with this. Kept trying the fingerprint thing to login, must have been some sort of problem, then found she was permanently locked out after a few failures.
Problem was it was her son's account, he was working abroad, and then couldn't go into the branch to fix it.
So the moral is, if you go for the fingerprint thing, just be very careful where & when you use it.

Thank you, witchunt, but I thought the print was supposed to BE the password?

Thanks for this, Clyde. I think I'd want to ask my banks first.

As the web sites/services are invariably expecting a character string, then those sites will still need to be presented with those. 1 or 2 banks may support finger print readers or one time tokens but they will usually issue that hardware themselves.

Most finger print readers simply lock/unlock log you into the PC, so unless there is a special password vault piece of software running you may find yourself still entering actual passwords. Devices with apps such as iPhone iOS are a different matter, since the app can access the verification that the phones own fingerprint reader is doing.

Without product specifics its hard for anyone to be more specific.

HP, used to have these on some laptops. Worked really well. As you say, the actual password is stored in a vault and you had to chose the site you were on.

Personally, while it sounds a good idea, It's only as secure as the vault. And also means people forget actual passwords as they use them less.

As to the person using it to access someone else's bank account... Tut Tut.

I've not found the finger print readers in the laptops I have owned to work very well. The HP laptop does try to store web page passwords as well as the Windows password.

About as useless as the passport machines at Gatwick airport.

Thanks for this information. I suspect that time is needed for the concept to be fully implemented. It was presented as a way of having to remember all the passwords and, also a 'cure all' for online fraud. This was on a TV consumer programme.. I'll let them know what I've ben told and what I discovered for myself. I asked one of my favourite shopping channels, and also Microsoft, and both agreed it could be used but still used the word 'password'.

In reply to a post by Heatherbee213:

It was presented as a way of having to remember all the passwords and, also a 'cure all' for online fraud. This was on a TV consumer programme.

How wrong these programs get it.
While it will work on phones or app's connected to phone, that use the same integrated reader. But connected to a laptop/PC even if a integral part. Still give you the option of using your password/username.

So you have bought something based on a concept from a TV programme and not surprised things are not doing what they said?

The best finger print integration is apple ios devices and even then for most websites you still need to type the password only for apps is the reader useable. Something similar might be possible for Windows 10 apps, but how many websites do you know have an actual app.