Passkeys are a type of two-factor authentication (2FA) that allows users to sign in to their accounts using their mobile devices instead of a password.
The Passkeys feature uses a combination of biometrics, such as face or fingerprint recognition.
Even if a hacker were to obtain the user’s password, they would still need physical access to the user’s mobile device to gain access to the account.
Since the dawn of the internet (and computing in general), password-based authentication has become the norm.
The passkey system relies on a separate paradigm that leverages cryptographic keys kept on devices used for account authentication in order to specifically combat phishing assaults.
Passkey standards were originally created by the FIDO Alliance, a security collaboration with several IT companies as members.
Today, Gmail and Drive are also able to use the feature.