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Vidoop ImageShield + AOL OpenID = 100 million+ potential Vidoop users

Portland-based Vidoop‘s ImageShield technology has been purported to be one of the most unhackable credential schemes on the market. It’s been tested, time and time again.

But today, the real testing begins.

Why? Because today a little online-service provider named AOL just released Vidoop ImageShield technology to each and every one of its users—each of whom have an AOL-based OpenID.

AOL OpenID featuring Vidoop Image Shield

Now, it’s no secret that this has been in the works. AOL has been forthright about the fact that it has been testing the technology. But it’s been a private BETA:

At AOL we had a chance to try out their ‘ImageShield’ technology since last few months. What we did is basically provide our AOL OpenID users (AOL users using their openid.aol.com/) with a way to secure their accounts by binding an ‘ImageShield’ password, so from next time when they try to login with their AOL OpenID at a 3rd party Relying Party site, instead of the traditional ‘password’, they can login securely using the ‘ImageShield’. In that way they can make sure they are always signing in from the secure AOL login page and also make sure they are not giving away their ‘real’ password to any possible attackers. This has been deployed on our closed beta environment as a trial run to see how our beta OpenID users would feel about the overall user experience and of course the security of their accounts.

Not anymore. Now, as the screenshot above illustrates, Vidoop’s technology is accessible to the public.

I hear you. “So what?” Well, the “so what” is this…

For OpenID logins, Vidoop’s ImageShield technology has generally been available to users of myVidoop. And that’s been about it.

And as much as I respect the Vidoop team and their accomplishments, I feel pretty safe saying that the myVidoop user base is slightly less than the AOL user base. Just a smidge.

But now? Now there is no difference.

Now, the Vidoop ImageShield user base is the AOL user base. Because Vidoop ImageShield is accessible to more than 100 million AOL users.

And, if I had to guess, I would say that that potential—the potential to have more than 100 million people using Vidoop technology to log in to OpenID-enabled sites—would make Vidoop ImageShield about the widest deployment of OpenID-based authentication technology on the market.

And that, my friend, is a big win for Vidoop. And for OpenID.

For more information on Vidoop ImageShield, visit Vidoop. For more on AOL and OpenID, visit OpenID Central on the AOL Developer Network.

(And, as always, please feel free to use your myVidoop, AOL, MyOpenID, or other relying party OpenID to comment.)

[Update July 11, 2008] TechCrunch has picked up the Vidoop ImageShield and AOL OpenID story, meaning it might get slightly more pick up now. Great to see Vidoop getting this recognition on a much, much larger stage.

  1. Can you tell us more about this? I’d want to find out more details.|

  2. […] of the Vidoop ImageShield release to AOL OpenID accounts first appeared on Silicon Florist, July 10. For more information on ImageShield technology, visit Vidoop. Related PostsEmailtoid […]

  3. @Gary Thanks for the additional info on the Verisign option. Didn’t mean for my nepotistic hometown focus on Vidoop to undermine what Verisign brings to the AOL OpenID table, as well.

  4. Oh and by the way..just under the Vidoop option is the token option from Verisign. In addition to using the token with AOL users can use the same token with Paypal. ebay, VeriSign’s OpenID provider at pip.verisignlabs.com as well as other relying parties which are part of the VeriSign “VIP network”.

    Interested folks can check out Paypal’s description here: https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=xpt/cps/securitycenter/general/PPSecurityKey-outside

  5. Great win for Vidoop, congrats to them!

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