Apple is going to replace passwords: meet Passkey
Bye passwords, hello Passkey. Apple is working on a new technique to log in to apps and websites with your face, or fingerprint. How does this work, and is it safe? Time for an introduction.
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Passkey uses your finger or face to login
If it’s up to Apple, we’ll say goodbye to the traditional password as soon as possible. Instead, we should log in with Face ID (facial scan) or Touch ID (fingerprint). To make this happen, Apple is currently tinkering with Passkey.
This system should ensure that you no longer have to use a traditional password in the future. Instead, while creating an account on an app or website, you scan your finger or face once.
Apple then converts your unique characteristics into a code, which is also unique. This code is then stored in the iCloud Keychain. This way you can easily and quickly log in on all your Apple devices. By the way, all data is encrypted, so that the content (your face scan or fingerprint) is protected.
That is how it works
According to Apple, Passkey is much more secure than logging in with a password. That’s right. When you now log in to an app or website, your entered password will be made unrecognizable.
This code is then forwarded, so that the ‘secret code’ (your password) is on both your device and the server of the app or website where you are trying to log in.
Passkey is going to work very differently. The new system ensures that your phone creates two passwords, as it were: one for external apps and websites, and one that always remains on your device. During login, only this first type is sent; your ‘private passkey’ will always remain on your iPhone. That way you run less risk, according to Apple.
When can I log in with this?
When can we log in with Apple Passkey? That’s not clear yet. For now, this is a test. Developers running the first test version of iOS 15 and macOS 12 (Monterey) can already get started.
Initially, Passkey will only work on Apple devices, but it is planned to roll out more widely in the future and many more people will start using it. Whether Apple succeeds in doing this remains to be seen. Companies such as Google are also working on a successor to passwords.
