Amazon Adds Support for Passkeys, Allowing for More Secure Logins
Amazon today announced that it has added passkey support to its desktop sites and mobile apps, allowing customers to sign in to their accounts without the need for a password.
Passkeys are a more secure alternative to passwords because a passkey cannot be shared with another person through a phishing attempt or leaked online through a database hack. Passkeys do not require customers to remember a password or add a two-factor authentication code, but they do require a verified device.
Passkeys can be set up in the Amazon settings, and on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, logging in to an Amazon account can be done with a Face ID or Touch ID scan once the feature is turned on. To enable it, go to Your Account > Login and Security, and choose the Set up option next to Passkeys.
Apple implemented support for passkeys with iOS 16 and macOS Ventura. Passkeys work through a public key that's stored on a website server and paired with a private key that's kept on a specific device. On Apple's devices, passkeys are authenticated with Face ID or Touch ID, and two keys must match to allow for a user to log in.
Passkeys rely on iCloud Keychain, which in turn requires two-factor authentication for further protection. Passkeys sync across all of a user's iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices, but they can also be used on non-Apple devices through a QR code system.
Amazon says that passkey support is available today for all Amazon customers using browsers, and that it will be rolling out to the Amazon app for iOS devices in the near future.
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Top Rated Comments
If the bad guy is holding you and your phone hostage... and plans to use violence... you're gonna have a bad time.
Reminds me of this:
Hint: the wrench will win. ;)
But what's more likely to happen is someone from far away trying to get into your accounts remotely. They could be in another state or another country. It happens all the time.
It's those hackers who will be stopped by these new protective measures since they don't have your phone in their hands.
In short... there are more hackers online than people in the real world following me around with a wrench.
:p
edit: others are saying it’s available?
The Keychain option to populate the 2FA field for sites that don't support Passkey is also very good.
A website or app can theoretically let you use a passkey with no password if they chose to allow it. It’s up to each individual website or app to do this, and pretty much none have so far.
Your passkeys are on device, so my guess (I don’t have a way to confirm this without trying to get banned myself) is even without iCloud your passkeys are accessible by you on your device, you just can’t use your backups and you have to migrate your accounts. Not many people get banned from iCloud without straight up fraud happening with their account.
Most websites will be kind enough to let you recover your account through email or text messages even if you lost your passkey. So you will be able to migrate your account off passkeys if you had to.
If you switch to Android, as long as you can sign in with some method or another, you can add another passkey to your account. Android supports passkeys (with certain devices) so you can add them to your account, you can also use a USB key to sign in. You’re not restricted to one device forever on the FIDO standard.