Preventing accidental password disclosure
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorStephen James Hobson
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A computer-implemented method, according to one embodiment, includes: receiving a preliminary password key from a user, and in response to receiving the preliminary password, determining whether a cursor of a graphical user interface is located in a password entry field. In response to determining that the cursor of the graphical user interface is not located in the password entry field, a warning is issued to the user. Additionally, any inputs that are received from the user are discarded in response to determining that the cursor of the graphical user interface is not located in the password entry field.
Claims20
A computer-implemented method, comprising:
- in response to receiving a preliminary password key from a user, determining whether a dedicated button has been activated by the user;
- in response to determining that the dedicated button has been activated by the user, determining whether a cursor of a graphical user interface is located in a password entry field;
- and
- in response to determining that the cursor of the graphical user interface is not located in the password entry field:
- causing a warning to be issued to the user, and
- preemptively discarding, from memory:
- the preliminary password key, and any inputs received from the user, before they appear in the graphical user interface,
- wherein preemptively discarding the preliminary password key and any inputs received from the user includes irreversibly erasing the preliminary password key and any inputs received from the user from the memory.
A computer program product, comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions readable by a processor, executable by the processor, or readable and executable by the processor, to cause the processor to:
- in response to receiving a preliminary password key from a user, determine whether a dedicated button has been activated by the user;
- in response to determining that the dedicated button has been activated by the user, determine whether a cursor of a graphical user interface is located in a password entry field;
- and
- in response to determining that the cursor of the graphical user interface is not located in the password entry field:
- cause a warning to be issued to the user, and
- preemptively discard, from memory:
- the preliminary password key, and any inputs received from the user, before they appear in the graphical user interface,
- wherein preemptively discarding the preliminary password key and any inputs received from the user includes irreversibly erasing the preliminary password key and any inputs received from the user from the memory.
A system, comprising:
- a display;
- a dedicated button;
- a processor;
- and
- logic integrated with the processor, executable by the processor, or integrated with and executable by the processor, the logic being configured to:
- in response to:
- receiving a preliminary password key from a user, and determining that a dedicated button has been activated by the user, determine whether a cursor of a graphical user interface is located in a password entry field;
- and
- in response to determining that the cursor of the graphical user interface is not located in the password entry field:
- cause a warning to be issued to the user, and
- preemptively discard, from memory, the preliminary password key and any inputs received from the user before they appear in the graphical user interface,
- wherein preemptively discarding the preliminary password key and any inputs received from the user includes irreversibly erasing the preliminary password key and any inputs received from the user from the memory.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.