Access Keys Are the New Passwords
Google has taken a step towards a password-free future by integrating passwords directly into Google Accounts. This change means you no longer need to remember a strong and unique password to protect your Google data, and you don’t need two-factor authentication as a backup in case someone steals your password. It’s the best of both worlds, and it’s available to your Google account right now.
What are passwords?
Password keys are a common replacement for passwords. Instead of logging in with a password, you create a password that is unique to your device, such as your Mac, PC, or smartphone. You then use device authentication to log into your account, including methods such as Face ID, fingerprint scanning, PIN lock, device password, or even a physical biometric authentication device.
When you generate an access key, a private cryptographic key is generated on your device and the corresponding public key is sent to Google. When Google receives an account login request, it checks your device to see if the keys match. The only way to do this is to approve the action with your device’s authentication so attackers can’t take over the process without having physical access to both the device and the authentication process, making it more important than ever to save your phone’s passcode. secret .
As long as you keep your devices close at hand and their authentication methods secure, passkeys are a breath of fresh air. This means you don’t have to worry about passwords and two-factor authentication. Signing into your Google account is as easy as buying something with Apple Pay or Google Pay. The more accounts you use passwords for, the easier (and more secure) your digital life becomes.
In the future, when you switch to a passkey, your account passwords will no longer work; but to ease the transition, companies like Google allow users to rely on the password as a backup. If you’re worried that your old computer doesn’t support biometric authentication, you can still use your password.
How to create and use passwords on your Google account
Access keys are stored locally on supported devices. If you’re using Apple devices, you’ll need an iPhone with iOS 16 and a Mac with macOS Ventura or higher. Android phones running Android 9 and later and PCs running Windows 10 or later are supported.
Access keys also support cross-device authentication. Let’s say you have a password stored on your iPhone or Android, you can use it to authenticate when you log in to your browser on Windows without using a password. Since this is essentially a master password, create an access key only on the computer you are using. Google recommends avoiding passwords on shared devices.
To get started, visit the new Google passwords page . Log in with your password and click “Create a password” . In the pop-up window, click Continue to create a passkey on the current device. Then select your account and click Continue again.
The device authentication will appear. This will depend on your computer or smartphone, but you can use your device password, Face ID, or PIN to authenticate. Then click Done to confirm. You can follow the same process on another device to create a new passkey, but this is especially useful if you’re an Apple user. If you create a password for Google on your iPhone and save it to your iCloud account, you can use the same password on all your Apple devices (Mac, iPhone, iPad) as long as you are signed in to the same iCloud account . – there is no need to repeat the whole process.
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