Imagine a world where you can login to your computer once and have full access to all of the functionality in your computer, plus seamless access to all of the web sites you visit on a daily basis. No more logging into each site individually, your computer’s operating system takes care of that for you.
That world may be coming quicker than you realize. I was listening to a recent episode of the PaulDotCom security podcast today. In this episode, they interviewed Jason Fossen, a SANS Security Faculty Fellow and instructor for SEC 505: Securing Windows. During the conversation, Jason mentioned some of the changes coming to the next version of Microsoft’s flagship operating system, Windows 8. What he described was, in a word, horrifying…
Not much information is out there about these changes yet, but it’s possible to piece together some of it. Jason mentioned that Windows 8 will have a broker system for passwords. Basically, Windows will store all of the passwords necessary to access all of the various services you interact with. Think something along the lines of 1Password or LastPass. The main difference being, this happens in the background with minimal interaction with the user. In other words, you never have to explicitly login to anything beyond your local Windows workstation.
Initially, Microsoft won’t have support for all of the various login systems out there. They seem to be focusing on their own service, Windows Live, and possibly Facebook. But the API is open, allowing third-parties to provide the necessary hooks to their own systems.
I’ve spent some time searching for more information and what I’m finding seems to indicate that what Jason was talking about is, in fact, the plan moving forward. TechRadar has a story about the Windows 8 Credential Vault, where website passwords are stored. The credential vault appears to be a direct competitor to 1Password and LastPass. As with other technologies that Microsoft has integrated in the past, this may be the death knell for password managers.
ReadWriteWeb has a story about the Windows Azure Access Control Service that is being used for Windows 8. Interestingly, this article seems to indicate that passwords won’t be stored on the Windows 8 system itself, but in a centralized “cloud” system. A system called the Access Control Service, or ACS, will store all of the actual login information, and the Windows 8 Password Broker will obtain tokens that are used for logins. This allows users to access their data from different systems, including tablets and phones, and retain full access to all of their login information.
Microsoft is positioning Azure ACS as a complete claims-based identity system. In short, this allows ACS to become a one-stop shop for single sign-on. I log into Windows and immediately have access to all of my accounts across the Internet.
Sounds great, right? In one respect, it is. But if you think about it, you’re making things REALLY easy for attackers. Now they can, with a single login and password, access every system you have access to. It doesn’t matter that you’ve used different usernames and passwords for your bank accounts. It doesn’t matter that you’ve used longer, more secure passwords for those sensitive sites. Once an attacker gains a foothold on your machine, it’s game over.
Jason also mentioned another chilling detail. You’ll be able to login to your local system using your Windows Live ID. So, apparently, if you forget your password for your local user, just login with your Windows Live ID. It’s all tied together. According to the TechRadar story, “if you forget your Windows password you can reset it from another PC using your Windows Live ID, so you don’t need to make a password restore USB stick any more.” They go on to say the following :
You’ll also have to prove your identity before you can ‘trust’ the PC you sync them to, by giving Windows Live a second email address or a mobile number it can text a security code to, so anyone who gets your Live ID password doesn’t get all your other passwords too – Windows 8 will make you set that up the first time you use your Live ID on a PC.
You can always sign in to your Windows account, even if you can’t get online – or if there’s a problem with your Live ID – because Windows 8 remembers the last password you signed in with successfully (again, that’s encrypted in the Password Vault).
With this additional tidbit of information, it would appear that an especially crafty attacker could even go as far as compromising your entire system, without actually touching your local machine. It may not be easy, but it looks like it’ll be significantly easier than it was before.
Federated identity is an interesting concept. And it definitely has its place. But, I don’t think tying everything together in this manner is a good move for security. Sure, you can use your Facebook ID (or Twitter, Google, OpenID, etc) already as a single login for many disparate sites. In fact, these companies are betting on you to do so. This ties all of your activity back to one central place where the data can be mined for useful and lucrative bits. And perhaps in the realm of a social network, that’s what you want. But I think there’s a limit to how wide a net you want to cast. But if what Jason says is true, Microsoft may be building the equivalent of the One Ring. ACS will store them all, ACS will verify them, ACS will authenticate them all, and to the ether supply them.
Good post and a scary thought. The ramifications of this will be at the workstation level within organizations are huge! With what we know about user awareness (or the lack thereof), the ease with which attackers are compromising our workstations, and the increased use of social networking for business this seems doomed to fail.
I like the ability to choose when/if my browser saves my passwords for web apps. I only allow this on sites that don’t contain anything sensitive and I am also one of the diligent few who change passwords on a regular schedule- what you don’t have a “Change Your Password Day”? You should! However, with this concept applied in a hostile environment this is a loosing battle. Forget password reuse, we’re getting into the realm of one password for all again.
Good post! Keep it up!
How easy will this make it for oppressive governments (especially including ours here in the USA) to make a single phone call and get a list of all of your passwords?
I mention this because, back when I was running an ISP here in Florida, I watched a sheriff’s deputy make a single phone call to Microsoft and ask for a list of everybody with whom a given MS Messenger account had been talking to for the previous three months. Without a court order or any verification that the caller was in fact a law enforcement officer, MS sent SIX monts of FULL TRANSCRIPTS to this guy’s PERSONAL email address.
I am SO glad I escaped from the whole Windows “thing” several years ago…