Passwords have become an antiquated form of authentication. The average internet user has over 100 online accounts, all typically protected by a password. Trying to come up with and remember unique, complex passwords for each account is virtually impossible. As a result, people often reuse the same weak, easy-to-guess passwords across multiple sites. This leaves consumers vulnerable to attackers that can compromise accounts by acquiring just one password.
However, the horizon brings a promising passwordless future: passkeys. After nearly ten years in development, passkeys are positioned to overhaul the digital authentication landscape. Read on for an in-depth look at what passkeys are, how they work, why they lead to better security, and what implementing passkeys could mean for your consumer app.
Understanding Passkeys
Passkeys serve as a replacement for the traditional username and password combo used for logging into online accounts. They provide a more secure, seamless method for users to authenticate.
Rather than typing passwords, passkeys rely on public-key cryptography to verify a user‘s identity. This approach prevents hackers from stealing sensitive login credentials that could grant them access to an account.
The breakthrough of this technology is thanks to the efforts of the FIDO Alliance. This consortium of leading technology companies including Apple, Google, Microsoft, and many other industry players recognized the need for safer alternatives to passwords.
In short, passkeys offer a passwordless future where users can log into sites and applications with ease while keeping their accounts safe from compromise.
How Passkeys Work
Passkeys fall under the umbrella of WebAuthn, a system that uses public-key cryptography for authentication. Here‘s a simplified explanation of how passkeys leverage this type of cryptography:
- When an account is created, the service generates two cryptographic keys – a public key and a private key.
- The public key gets stored on the server the account is hosted on. This key does not need to remain confidential.
- The private key is stored securely on the user‘s device. It should never leave the device.
- When attempting to log in later, the service utilizes the public key to challenge the user‘s device.
- The private key on the device can respond to this challenge to prove ownership of the account.
For end users, the main visible part of this process is confirming their identity via a simple prompt for a PIN, fingerprint scan, facial recognition, or another biometric on their device. The cryptography works behind the scenes to eliminate passwords while keeping logins secure.
An added benefit of passkeys is that major platforms like Apple, Google, and Microsoft synchronize these keys through their cloud services. This convenient continuity allows passkeys to work across multiple devices without having to manually move or re-register keys.
By relying on unique cryptographic data stored safely on people‘s personal devices, passkeys inherently provide multifactor authentication. They meet the standards of possession factor (users possess their device) and inherence factor (biometrics or PIN knowlege). As such, passkeys serve as a single, robust sign-in method.
The Security Benefits of Passkeys
Passkeys introduce several layers of security that passwords lack:
- With no actual passwords to steal or reuse across sites, passkeys are more resilient to phishing attempts, malware attacks, and data breaches.
- The built-in multifactor nature adds additional identity verification beyond just possessing a single piece of information.
- Cryptographic private keys never leave people‘s devices, preventing the confidential data needed for login from being intercepted.
Research by Google found that adding a second verification factor makes high-risk accounts 99.999% less likely to get hacked. With passkeys essentially baking multifactor authentication directly into the login process without any extra steps for users, they encourage exceptionally safe account security by default.
Current Device Compatibility
Platforms from all major tech ecosystems now have some level of support for passkeys, though the functionality does continue to roll out.
- Apple has integrated passkey support into iOS 16, iPadOS 16.1, and macOS Ventura.
- Google‘s Android 13 operating system and Chrome browser allow creation and use of passkeys.
- Microsoft plans robust passkey improvements for Windows 11 and Edge, targeted for early 2023.
For a frequently updated list of devices, operating systems, and browsers that support passkeys, check the FIDO Alliance‘s passkey capability reference page.
Implementing Passkeys for Your Application
Adding passkey functionality takes careful planning but can greatly improve both security and user experience. Here are best practices to follow:
Have Proper Infrastructure in Place
The foundation for passkeys is having a WebAuthn server or back-end service. This provides the necessary API endpoints to fully manage passkeys throughout their lifecycle. Options like Auth0, Okta, and ForgeRock offer WebAuthn services to build upon.
Utilize SDKs and Libraries for Front-End Integration
With a WebAuthn back-end established, you can tap into readily available SDKs and libraries for enabling passkeys on the client-side. Examples include JavaScript/TypeScript WebAuthn libraries like awesome-webauthn or purpose-built passkey SDKs from Authsignal. These simplify the implementation work.
Carefully Consider UX
More than just the technical integration, the user experience impact of passkeys deserves thoughtful design. Passkey UX best practices involve:
- Streamlining enrollment/provisioning flows
- Handling loss scenarios & recovery gracefully
- Explaining the technology clearly to end users
Education and visibility into this novel approach can go a long way toward driving adoption.
Evaluate Security Trade-Offs
With all authentication methods, certain security trade-offs exist. For passkeys, businesses should assess factors like:
- Allowing lower-security options as fallback when high-security methods like biometrics fail
- Potentially letting users register multiple passkeys to provide redundancy
- Building recovery mechanisms that won‘t undermine security promises
Getting these balances right ensures passkeys add security rather than ultimately weakening it.
Passkey Use Cases
Many major platforms have started rolling out passkey functionality, providing great examples of their capabilities:
Apple
Apple allows users to log into their iCloud Keychain using passkeys. They support secure passkey generation right from iOS and macOS devices to unlock online Apple IDs.
For Google accounts, users can utilize passkeys from Android phones as well as ChromeOS devices and Chrome browsers. Passkey sign-ins for Gmail and other Google services reduce reliance on less secure backup methods.
PayPal
PayPal piloted passkey login functionality for its Android app, using fingerprint authentication. This removed the need to enter a password, offering users faster, passwordless financial account access.
As more sites adopt passkeys, consumers will come to expect this frictionless, yet more secure, login experience across all their apps and online services.
Getting Started With Implementing Passkeys
Ready to help future-proof your application‘s security model and user experience? Here is a step-by-step guide to deploying passkey authentication:
- Gain executive support for upgrading authentication methods to align with industry-standard passwordless models.
- Audit your existing WebAuthn capabilities and infrastructure to identify gaps needed for passkey support.
- Select and implement a third-party WebAuthn service or build custom back-end functionality.
- Determine ideal passkey integration points, either replacing or augmenting password logins.
- Leverage WebAuthn libraries/SDKs for smooth front-end passkey integration.
- Provide user testing and a pilot rollout to optimize experiential elements before broad launch.
Gradually shift users over to exclusive passkey usage whenever feasible to realize the full security and convenience benefits. Devise fallback options and transition periods so users aren‘t suddenly left without login access during the change.
Stay ahead of the curve in protecting consumer identities as passwordless authentication sees accelerating adoption. Please reach out for help assessing passkey solutions suiting your application‘s specific needs.
The Passwordless Future
Passkeys have reached a watershed moment with expanded platform support and a maturing technological landscape. As more websites and apps implement support, consumers will rapidly gravitate toward these more user-friendly, secure mechanisms for account access.
For developers, passkey integration simplifies down to utilizing modern authentication standards through available libraries and cloud services. This removes the liability of building and safeguarding a password infrastructure. The incentives align across the board for consumers, businesses, and authentication providers to leave passwords in the past.
By adopting passkeys early instead of clinging to legacy credentials, you ensure your application leads the vanguard making the passwordless future a reality. Your users will thank you for saving them the headaches of passwords while keeping their accounts profoundly more protected.
