Verizon has unveiled a new QR code login service the company designed to ease mobile access to participating websites without the need to enter  a username and password as part of efforts to avoid potential data breaches.
Janet Brumfield, a corporate communications director at Verizon Enterprise Solutions, writes in a Tuesday post that the service will be offered as part of the company’s Universal Identity Services and is intended to prevent such incidents as phishing and fraud.
“We continue to see user names and passwords fail as a secure way to log in, no matter how complex the password,” said Tracy Hulver, Verizon chief identity strategist.
Lost or stolen usernames and passwords have been identified as a cause of data breaches in the Verizon 2014 Data Breach Investigations Report, Brumfield writes.
She says the cloud-based login service requires users to register for a Verizon Universal ID, download a smartphone app to scan the dynamic QR code indicated on the login page and use the code alongside other login credentials.
ID strength also has three levels based on the needed security for the information or transaction the user will access or perform, Brumfield adds.