It's about to get a whole lot easier to log into apps on Android. Google and password manager Dashlane announced a new open log-in protocol, unfortunately named Open YOLO (You Only Login Once).
Open YOLO will allow password managers to log you into all of your apps at once, without you having to do a thing. It works similarly to Google Smart Lock, allowing passwords stored in Chrome to be shared between apps and websites.
But, instead of only working with Chrome's password manager, you can use your password manager of choice with Open YOLO.
Currently, users have to log into their password manager, hope it finds the appropriate login, and wait for the info to be copied and pasted over. With Open YOLO, all of this happens automatically, making setting up a new phone a breeze.
Android only, for now
This open protocol allows apps to access passwords stored in your password manager of choice, such as Dashlane. So far, only Dashlane has announced official support for Open YOLO, but the open protocol means other password managers can add the feature if they choose.
Open YOLO currently only supports Android, which is a shame for iOS users. Dashlane says it sees Open YOLO working "beyond just Android devices," so there's still hope.
Since our brains aren't very good at remembering a long sequence of random letters, numbers, and symbols, passwords can be, in a word, terrible. Most of us choose to use our bodies as passwords, leveraging the fingerprint readers on our phones. Open YOLO is just one more step toward killing the password, and that's a good thing for convenience.
