Question

Sometimes on sites you see a link where you can login directly (without needing to fill in a form), for example like so:

http://www.domain.com/account/343654-SDFh454-45

Clicking that link directs me directly to MY account.

I was wondering, is this a good practice?

I mean, the pros and cons I can come up with:

pro:
– easy for user to login quickly

con:
– link may be in browser history so other users may access it

Anything else?

Answer 1

A few things to note:

1. Normally, if your credentials aren’t saved, even having that link requires a username and password.
2. It is good practice.
3. If you were to give us a specific example on a site, it would be easier to answer your question.