Passkeys vs. Passwords: Should You Switch?

Passwords are easy to steal, reuse and forget. Passkeys are designed to fix that. A passkey lets you sign in to a website or app using the same thing that unlocks your phone or computer: a fingerprint, a face scan or your device PIN.

How passkeys work

When you create a passkey, your device generates two linked cryptographic keys. The public key is stored by the website. The private key stays on your device and never leaves it. To sign in, your device proves it holds the private key after you approve with your biometric or PIN. There is no secret for the website to leak.

Why they are safer

• Phishing resistant: a passkey only works on the real website it was created for, so a fake login page cannot capture it.
• No reuse: each site gets its own key pair.
• Nothing to remember or type.

Limitations to know about

Passkeys depend on your device or password manager. If you lose your phone, you need a recovery method, so make sure your account has backups and that your passkeys sync through a trusted service. Not every website supports them yet, so you will use both passkeys and passwords for a while.

How to start

Look for a prompt such as "Create a passkey" in the security settings of your email, bank or shopping accounts. Start with your most important account, usually your main email, and keep a strong password plus two-factor authentication as a fallback until you are comfortable.