It seems like something out of a Robert Ludlum spy novel. Someone tries to coerce you into revealing your. You might be tempted to give in, but it is impossible for you to reveal your. You do not actually know them because they are safely buried deep within your subconscious. Sounds a bit extreme just to make sure no one can log on to your laptop or smartphone, but a team of researchers from Stanford and Northwestern universities as well as SRI International is nonetheless experimenting at the computer-, cognitive- and neuroscience intersection to combat identity theft and shore up cyber security—by taking advantage of the human brain’s innate abilities to learn and recognize patterns. The researchers are studying ways to covertly create and store secret data within the, which is responsible for reminding us how to do things.