Google makes Passkeys Adoption Easy

Google has announced that now its giving all users the ability to set up their own passkeys by default. It is a feature that it released a year back.

Passkeys are a type of authentication credential that allows users to log in to sites and services without having to enter a password. It is built on the WebAuthentication standard, and passkeys use public-key cryptography to provide a secure and convenient way to authenticate logins without the inherent risk of regular passwords.

Passkeys are more secure than passwords since they’re not human-readable, so they can not be stolen through phishing attacks. Passkeys are also unique to each website or service, so if one website is compromised, other passkeys are still safe.

Google has been a strong backer of passkeys, having first provided the option to user accounts in May and then later extending them to Google Workspace in June. The rollout of passkeys by default today will see all Google users being prompted to create and use passkeys when they sign into their Google account. Passkey support is already available on Android.

More than 64% of Google users find passkeys easier to use compared to traditional methods like passwords and two-factor authentication, while more than 62% said they felt more secure.

The reason people are said to be pleased with passkeys is because they’re 40% faster than passwords and only require the method used to unlock devices, such as fingerprints, face scans and personal identification numbers.

Users will be prompted to create passkeys when logging into their Google accounts by default, and its not made mandatory, at least for now. When prompted to create a passkey, users can still use a password to sign in and can opt out of being prompted to create a passkey by turning off “skip password” when possible.”