Microsoft makes passkeys default for all new accounts

Passkeys are great, it replaces passwords for good. While Microsoft has been in favor of passwordless logins for half a decade now, it is finally making passkeys the default for authentication of all new accounts.

To catch you up, Microsoft recently launched an optimized design for sign-in window. It features reorderd steps that ensure passwordless and passkey-first experience. 

Microsoft makes passkeys the default for authentication of all new account users

Well, Microsoft is making probably the biggest decision for its no-passwords approach. As part of this change, Microsoft will ask users to sign up for new accounts to use only more secure methods by default, including passkey, push notifications, and security keys. 

Even though the company is making passkey the default for new accounts, current users won’t have to delete their passwords. However, Microsoft wants new users to leave them behind in favor of passkeys, without prompting them to create a password at all. In the announcement blog post, Microsoft notes, 

As part of this simplified UX, we’re changing the default behavior for new accounts. Brand new Microsoft accounts will now be “passwordless by default.” New users will have several passwordless options for signing into their account, and they’ll never need to enroll a password. Existing users can visit their account settings to delete their password.

Also read: How to Turn Off Password Protected Sharing in Windows 11

Besides making passkeys the default for new accounts, Microsoft is also renaming “World Password Day” to “World Passkey Day.” The company further commits to continuing work towards implementing passkeys in the future. Not to forget, Microsoft also implemented passkeys for consumer accounts around this time last year.

Microsoft’s latest decision to make passkeys the default for new accounts comes as the password-less approach is getting popular among users. The company notes that “nearly a million passkeys are registered every day.”

Also read: How to Use Your Windows 11 Password Without Pressing Enter