Passkeys: The Beginning of the End for Passwords
Passkeys: The Beginning of the End for Passwords
A few days ago, I posted about Troy Hunt getting phished, a cautionary tale if there ever was one. If a cybersecurity expert like Troy, who created Have I Been Pwned, can fall for a phishing attack, then what chance do the rest of us have?
This is exactly why I’m excited about passkeys.
🔐 What Are Passkeys?
In plain English: passkeys are a passwordless way to sign in that’s both more secure and easier to use. They’re built on public key cryptography and replace your password with a unique key pair:
The public key sits on the server.
The private key stays securely on your device.
When you log in, the server sends a challenge that only your private key can answer. No shared secrets, no password to steal—just cryptographic magic that can’t be phished or guessed.
Passkeys replace passwords with a simple, secure authentication experience.
✨ How It Works in Real Life
Using a passkey feels as simple as Face ID, Touch ID, or your device PIN—but that’s just one way to authenticate.
You can also use passkeys stored in your password manager (like iCloud Keychain, 1Password, or Bitwarden), or even on a hardware security key like a YubiKey. Some platforms even let you approve login requests on one device (like your phone) for another (like your laptop). Either way, there’s no password to type, and nothing for an attacker to steal or phish.
Passkeys simplify the login experience while keeping your credentials secure.
📊 Why Passkeys Win
Let’s break it down:
Security Comparison Table
Why passkeys win on every front: phishing-resistant, unique, and seamless.
📱 Real-World Usage
You’ve probably already seen passkeys in action. Companies like Google, Apple, PayPal, Amazon, and others have already rolled them out.
When you see the option to “Use a passkey,” take it. It’s not just easier—it’s far safer.
Passkeys are already supported by major platforms like Apple, Google, and Amazon.
🛠️ What’s the Catch?
We’re still in a transition phase. Not every site supports passkeys yet, and enterprise adoption takes time. But it’s moving fast—and password managers are now helping bridge the gap by syncing passkeys across platforms.
Whether you’re on iOS, Android, macOS, or Windows, support is growing every day.
🔚 The Bottom Line
Troy Hunt’s phishing story is a reminder that even the best of us are vulnerable. But passkeys change the game. They remove the single weakest link in almost every breach and compromise we’ve seen over the past 20 years: the humble (and all-too-human) password.
It’s time we move on.
Try passkeys the next time you see the option. You might just feel the future of authentication in your fingertips.
