UK Company Introduces Emojis for Password Protection Sites

Emojis are making their way to passwords, signalling a trend that that this could be – or we are hoping will be – implemented as an option across most password-protected online services. 

A UK technology company called Intelligent Environments has launched the world’s first emoji-only passcode because it believes that emoji Pins are more secure than standard digits and easier to remember.

“There are 480 times more permutations using emoji over traditional four-digit passcodes,” said the firm.

“This will prevent hackers identifying common and easily obtainable numerical passcodes, like a date of birth or a wedding anniversary.

“This new emoji security technology is also easier to remember, as research shows that humans remember pictures better than words.”

Memory expert Tony Buzan, inventor of the Mind Map technique, added: “The emoji passcode plays to humans’ extraordinary ability to remember pictures, which is anchored in our evolutionary history. We remember more information when it’s in pictorial form, that’s why the emoji passcode is better than traditional Pins.”

Just imagine, if it does catch on, confirming your password to a customer services executive: “Er, I think my passcode is poop with eyes, thumbs up, crying smiley and shocked cat. Yes, that’s the one.” 

Emojis aren’t a new thing to the online consumer world and marketers certainly seem to be cottoning on to the trend. Earlier this month, Norwegian Airlines created an emoji-only URL to promote a cheap flight to Las Vegas. And in May, Domino’s also started taking mobile ordering when users placed an order tweeting the chain a pizza slice emoji.

The Unicode Consortium that oversees the standard encoding and handling of text input announced support for 250 additional emoji last year. They were rolled out in iOS earlier this year.

Unicode version 7.0 features a range of 2,834 characters, including Russian and Azerbaijani currency symbols and a range of “lesser-used and historic scripts”.

Most of the emoji symbols have come from existing Wingdings, Webdings and TrueType font symbols, but are customised and tweaked by art departments at organisations such as Apple and Google that use them in their applications.

Among the symbols are ‘heart with tip on the left’, ‘bullhorn with sound waves’ and, most intriguingly of all, ‘man with business suit levitating’.

This article was originally published on the Inquirer.