May 9, 2023
Google revealed plans to enable passkeys across accounts on all of its main platforms, as well as across devices, in a move that might pave the way for a password-free future.
The news follows Google’s vow, along with Microsoft, Apple, and others, to transition to passkeys with enhanced support for the Fast Identity Online Alliance (FIDO) and World Wide Web Consortium’s common passwordless sign-in standard.
Identity access management firms like Cisco’s Duo, as well as Okta and 1Password, are moving quickly into a biometrics and passkey future. For 1Password, it is set to allow users to store, manage, and utilize passkeys to access their online accounts using 1Password in the browser in order to unchain passkeys from specific devices using a mobile 2FA authenticator for passkeys.
Passkeys enable the release of private keys from the device that has them. Rather of using passwords on a server, public key cryptography saves a unique key on a user’s device, while a public key encrypts the data. The private key is never lost, allowing for seamless authentication across several devices.
Identity and credential management operators discussed the end of passwords at the RSA Conference. While some security experts feel the transformation will take time, Google’s statement represents a major shift in the security environment.
The sources for this piece include an article in TechRepublic.
