Microsoft drops native SecurID support from Vista

Passwords have their weaknesses; that's a given. One stronger security measure that has been increasing in popularity recently is two-factor authentication. Two-factor authentication works by requiring that a user present two tokens of his or her identity simultaneous, say a USB dongle and a six-digit password. It's like your ATM card—it won't work without your PIN.

Faced with a desire for better workstation security—especially from enterprise IT departments—Microsoft said last year it would be supporting two-factor authentication natively in Vista, including support for RSA SecurID authentication scheme. That has changed, as two-factor authentication has joined the list of stuff that isn't going to make into the initial Vista release after all.