Microsoft Strengthens Hotmail Security
Microsoft rolled out a new set of security features on Sept. 27 designed to keep Hotmail accounts safe from online attack .
The first, called “Trusted PC,” links a user’s Hotmail account to one or more of the user’s personal computers; if the owner needs to reset his password, he simply needs to be using his computer which has been registered with Hotmail and Microsoft will know he is the legitimate account holder.
Hotmail will also now send SMS messages via cell phone to people who need to rest the password of an account that has been compromised.
The features are called “proofs,” which Microsoft describes as “spare keys” – ways the user can prove to Hotmail that he is the account's rightful user. Until now, Hotmail has offered only two proofs – an alternate email address and a personal question paired with a secret answer. The old proofs, Microsoft explained on its Windows Live blog, did not provide adequate security .
