You might have noticed that many online services are now offering the option of using passkeys, a digital authentication method touted as an easier and more secure way to log in.
Some 20% of the world’s top 100 websites now accept passkeys, said Andrew Shikiar, CEO of the FIDO Alliance, an industry group that developed the core authentication technology behind passkeys.
Passkeys first came to the public’s attention when Apple added the technology to iOS in 2022. They got more traction after Google started using them in 2023. Now, many other companies including PayPal, Amazon, Microsoft and eBay work with passkeys. There’s a list on the FIDO Alliance website.
Still, some popular sites like Facebook and Netflix haven’t started using them yet.
Passkey technology is still in the “early adoption” phase but “it’s just a matter of time for more and more sites to start offering this,” Shikiar said.
