In an exclusive with Tech Crunch, Google announced that it will begin testing out logins that don't require a typed-in password: instead, users will have an alert sent to their phone, which users can then respond to in order to access their account. 

Tech Crunch, which deigned the alternative, key-less login procedure, an alternative "option," as opposed to an all-out eventual substitution for the standard character-based password, pointed out the utility in the notification-based method, citing added security buffers and faster login times. 

In an email to the news site, Google gave a simple step-by-step as to how the typing-free login works: users who sign into their Google accounts will only have to enter their email address; from there, Google will send a notification to the user's phone (which is, as you can guess, linked up to the email account) with a simple question: if he or she is attempting to sign into the account from a different device. To respond, the user can select either "yes" or "no." If the user presses yes, the account will automatically open.

Besides simplifying the process, Google's new password-less login system can also root out phishing. In the event of a stolen phone, you're all jake if you have TouchID, which will automatically lock up all of your information if it gets in the wrong (and unfamiliar) hands. 

Right now, Google is sending out its login experiment to random testers; the company has stressed the alternative login option, available for both Android and iOS, can be turned off at any time. 

Check out stills of the beta here, courtesy of Reddit user Rohit Paul, who first broke the story.

Via: Slashgear

Photo: Scott Schiller | Flickr