Emoji alternative to PINs launched

Banking and Borrowing

Updated on 16 June 2015 | 4 Comments

Emoji-only passcodes 'safer' than traditional PINS, research claims.

British firm Intelligent Environments has launched the world’s first emoji-only passcode system.

Users can log into their bank account with four emoji characters rather than traditional PINs or passwords. The technology has been integreated into the firm's digital banking app.

With 44 emoji characters to choose from, there are 480 times more permutations than there are with traditional four digit PINs - there are 7,290 unique permutations of four non-repeating numbers, whereas emoji passcodes have almost 3.5 million unique permutations.

The firm also claims that it is more secure as it stops hackers from identifying common numerical passcodes such as birthdays, anniversaries or a simple 1234.

What’s more, the visual nature of the passcode makes it easier to remember.

According to research by Intelligent Environments, almost a third of us have forgotten PINs before, with one in four saying that they use the same PIN for all of their cards.

Millennial-driven technology

Emoji is supposedly the fastest growing language in the UK, evolving faster than ancient forms of communication like hieroglyphics.

Demand for the new Emoji-passcode is partly driven by millennials (the term for those born between the early 1980s and early 2000s). Intelligent Enviroments' research revealed that 64% of millennials regularly communicate using only emojis.

The firm said it is currently in talks with banks who are considering rolling out emoji passcodes to account holders within the next 12 months.

Would you prefer an emoji-only passcode to a traditional PIN? Let us know your thoughts via the comments box below.

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