Imagine a Bionym Nymi that doesn’t provide much in the way of robust security. If that appeals to you, check out the Everykey Kickstarter.
The Nymi, as you probably know, stores and transmits passwords and is locked by your heart rhythms. Take off the wristband, and no one else can use it because no one else’s EKG is the same as yours.
The Everykey claims to do a lot of what the Nymi does, except for that pesky, hard, and expensive security stuff. Lose the Everykey and you’ve lost your passwords. You can call a toll-free number or go to an Everykey web site to disable the passwords for websites — those passwords are encrypted and stored on an Everykey server — but it’s not clear how that technique would kill access to your computer or smartphone. It also requires you to trust that the phone will be answered and the website will work as advertised, and quickly.
Everykey’s founders also make a big deal out of how fashionable the device is. It isn’t, unless your idea of haute couture is a colorful and less textured Jawbone UP24.
They’re trying to raise $100,000. Retail price will be $100, but Kickstarter buyers can get the Everykey for $50. They say they’ll ship in March, which indicates that this team has never brought a hardware product to market.