Update: DOH! Well that was quick! It looks like this was just an "experiment" on Google's part, if you go to the page you now get the following message:
Hi there - thanks for your interest in our phone-based login experiment. While we have concluded this particular experiment, we constantly experiment with new and more secure authentication mechanisms. Stay tuned for something even better!
If anything else pops up we'll report back!
I have a great deal invested in my Google account -- between GMail, calendar, address book, Google Docs, Google Voice and Google+, my account has most of my online life attached to it. So I treat my Google password like the valuable Precious that it is.
There have been times where I've needed to login to my Google account from some pretty sketchy computers, like my mom's HP -- which is connected directly into her cable modem with no firewall between the internet and Windows XP. I get sick just thinking about what is living inside that grey box.
In the past I've carried my Google password on a USB stick so I can simply copy and paste from the stick to the sketchy machine. This really wasn't a great solution however because I've left the USB stick at home and also run the risk of picking up whatever virus is on the computer in question.
Google has now come forward with a terrific solution which uses your BlackBerry smartphone to log you in without using the keyboard of the computer.
The first thing you need to do is: On the browser of the computer, navigate to account.google.com/sesame where the page will provide you with a unique QR code for this session. Refer to Joseph's article on how to scan QR codes for more.
Once the QR code is scanned your BlackBerry browser will open to the Google login page. Simply type your Google credentials into your BlackBerry browser, which presumably is more secure than the computer you wish to use, and click login. After clicking to login you will be given a warning page to ensure that you only arrived at this login page via Google.com
After you click on "Start with Gmail" or "Start with iGoogle" the browser on the computer will automatically log you in. I've tested this with Safari on the Mac and IE, Chrome and Firefox on Windows, all of which worked flawlessly. Web features like Google Open Sesame gives you one more reason to never ever be without your BlackBerry smartphone!
Soure: Lifehacker
Reader comments
Use your BlackBerry to login to Gmail account from an unsecure computer
I also just recently setup google's dual stage login. This requires the computer to be authenticated before you are able to access your account. And with the handy "Google Authenticator" app it makes the dual stage login a breeze.
I think this is probably the better option, at least easier any way, and a more proven way of doing things.
Entered URL as you posted it and my neither browser I use, Firefox and Chrome could not find the server. Am I missing something?
You are missing the "s" - should be accounts.google
Kind of deceptive to put this on the front page. I just went to the sesame page and received the following message.
"Hi there - thanks for your interest in our phone-based login experiment.
While we have concluded this particular experiment, we constantly experiment with new and more secure authentication mechanisms.
Stay tuned for something even better!
Dirk Balfanz, Google Security Team. "
That said, two-factor authentication using the Google Authenticator app is pretty darn good. Not as "magic" as open-says-me, but good none the less.
Gone tommorow... Already taken down wtf
So, this was only an experiment. I tried the page but got this:
"Hi there - thanks for your interest in our phone-based login experiment.
While we have concluded this particular experiment, we constantly experiment with new and more secure authentication mechanisms.
Stay tuned for something even better!"
Dirk Balfanz, Google Security Team.
Cant wait...
Same message for me too......"our phone-based login experiment"
Would have been interesting to try it out.....guess we'll just wait for the "something even better"
Well that is major "lunch bag letdown". Come on Google bring it back!
Look, http://m.zdnet.com/blog/igeneration/googles-qr-code-log-in-experiment-co...
ZDNet posted the closure of this experiment about 9 hr before CB invited us to try it.
login to Gmail, go to Account Settings, an enable 2-step Verification, and then install Google Authenticator on your BlackBerry.
so 1 hour ago
Wouldn't have mattered for me anyway, any QR scanner I've tried for my 9700 (running 5.0) has never worked, I've only tried the free ones out there but figured I'd give those a go just to see how they are, never did a thing would never recognize anything.
I used the scanner from inside Appworld and worked fine to test this login process yesterday, worked fine on Firefox browser.
Hey Isaac, if you love your mom, install a firewall for her. It might show your appreciation for that gift of life :)