Apple, Google, and Microsoft joined forces on "password-less" log-ins!

In a rare show of collaboration, these tech giants have teamed up to support passwordless log-ins across mobile, desktop, and browsers.

Apple, Google, and Microsoft logo (Photo from Linkedin)

Simply unlock your phone to sign into a website or app soon

Apple, Google, and Microsoft had an announcement that they are looking for means to get rid of passwords and replace them with a more secure way to access devices and accounts. 

According to Verizon's annual data breach report, passwords are notoriously insecure, with weak and easily guessable credentials accounting for more than 80 percent of all data breaches.

In light of this, they are expanding support for a password-free sign-in standard from the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium. Basically, this is a common standard that will allow users to sign in via fingerprint or face recognition.

Soon, it may be possible for users to access their smartphone to sign in to an app or website on a nearby device, regardless of the operating system or browser they are using. Vice President of Microsoft Alex Simons added,

The complete shift to a passwordless world will begin with consumers making it a natural part of their lives. By working together as a community across platforms, we can at last achieve this vision and make significant progress toward eliminating passwords.

Allegedly, adopting standards made by the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium will let websites and device makers build secure, passwordless options into their offerings. Using secure keys instead of passwords would prevent phishing scams that deceive people into disclosing log-in credentials and hackers that steal such data. 

Google product manager and FIDO Alliance President Sampath Srinivas explained that support for password-free log-ins will be woven into Android and Chrome software over the course of the coming year. 

Srinivas noted that it will simplify sign-ins across devices, websites, and applications no matter the platform - without the need for a single password. He said that mobile phones will store a FIDO credential referred to as a "passkey" that will be used to unlock online accounts

Apple and Microsoft announced plans to do the same thing with their software. 

Source: ABS-CBN