Julia HUGHES Token2

About a year ago, we released Token2 Molto-1, the world's first programmable multi-profile hardware token. While Molto-1 is still the only solution of its kind currently available on the market, we will be soon releasing a new variation of a multi-profile hardware token, in a different form-factor and with a different set of features available.

While Molto-1 has its advantages, there were some shortcomings that we wanted to address, for example, it can only hold up to ten TOTP profiles, which is not enough for many users. Also, using NFC to program the device does not look very convenient for some users. There were also requests to have a backlight for the screen of the token, so it can be used in the dark. With Molto-2 we tried to address this and a few other concerns. So, we hereby present our new device model, Token2 Molto-2 with the following specifications:

TOKEN2 MOLTO-2 multi-profile programmable TOTP hardware token:

▣ RFC 6238 compliant

▣ supports up to 50 accounts/profiles

▣ USB-programmable with a Windows app

▣ RTC battery life: 8 years

▣ LCD screen battery: 3-4 months (rechargeable)

The table below shows the comparison between Molto-1 and Molto-2

Today, we are presenting a new type of TOTP hardware tokens — USB Programmable token that displays the OTP value as a QR code and also can send the current OTP value over USB as a part of its HID emulation feature.

What is EVVIS-QR1?

EVVIS-QR1 is a hardware device developed primarily for Electronic visit verification (EVV) information systems (hence the name). It is a standards-based TOTP hardware token that can also be programmed over USB. The OTP generated is shown on the display both as regular digits as well as a QR image. Both features (OTP shown as QR code and HID keyboard emulation) are intended to make it possible to minimize typos when entering the OTP.

TOKEN2 started manufacturing and selling programmable hardware tokens back in 2015 and we have been constantly asked questions about iPhone support. So far, our burner apps were available only for Android and Windows, as Apple did not allow using the NFC protocol on their devices, even though the hardware supporting NFC was physically present.

iOS 13 — coreNFC

The situation has improved a little bit with the release of iOS v13 when access to more features of coreNFC Developer API was introduced. Unfortunately, we discovered that it is not fully compatible with the NFC chips we are using. As there are little chances that Apple will make an effort to change this to adapt to our NFC chips, we had to do the opposite and develop a new, iOS13 compatible, NFC chip instead.

Token2 C301-i, the first iOS-compatible programmable TOTP token

Our first iOS-compatible token (model reference: “C301-i”) is currently being beta-tested and will start selling in a couple of months. Pre-orders are available here.

[Update 15/09/2020: Molto2 is coming]

Our new product currently being finalized, the Token2 Molto-1, will expand on our technology by now supporting up to 10 Time based One-Time Password (TOTP) profiles. Earlier this year, with the miniOTP-2, miniOTP-3, and C301 we introduced the world’s first programmable TOTP tokens with time sync. The aim of these products was to provide a solution to the time drift that affects hardware tokens. We didn’t want to stop there, though! We also recognize the desire for multiple profiles which is why our latest product is a programmable multi-profile hardware token, called Token2 Molto-1. The clue is in the name, at least for anyone who understands Italian — “molto” is “many” in Italian. Having a multi-profile programmable hardware token means you can have only one device for up to 10 of your accounts.

Titan Security Keys are marketed as phishing-resistant two-factor authentication (2FA) devices that help protect high-value users such as IT admins. They have been around for quite some time and have been largely promoted as the most secure second-factor device ever, both by Google itself and media.

We are glad to announce two new models of programmable TOTP tokens, both in a small card (miniOTP-3) and in a keyfob form-factor (C301), now with restricted time sync.

About three months ago Microsoft has announced the availability of OATH TOTP hardware tokens in Azure MFA. The feature is still in “public preview”, but we see many of our customers using the feature in production already now. As we are testing this for the last couple of months in our lab environment and, in many cases, we are also assisting our customers with the activation of the feature, we have some observations that we believe are worth sharing.

TOTP tokens are small, easy-to-use devices that generate one-time passcodes. These tamper-evident devices can be used wherever strong authentication is required.

TOKEN2 is selling programmable hardware tokens in credit card format for already a few years now. Token2 miniOTP cards are marketed as a hardware alternative to Google Authenticator or other OATH-compliant software tokens. Having the same functionality extended to tokens in classic keyfob/dongle format was one of the features our customers asked for.

We are hereby announcing our new product, TOKEN2 C300 TOTP hardware token, which is possible to be reseeded for an unlimited number of times via NFC using a special «burner» app.