This is a small revolution: now, it will no longer be compulsory to create a password for a Microsoft account. The digital giant favors a safer authentication method: the famous Passkeys.
After other digital giants, Microsoft begins a small revolution in terms of security by turning their back on passwords. From now on, the new accounts created with the company – the famous Microsoft accounts which serve as much in Windows, as in Outlook or Microsoft 365 – will no longer ask for a default password by offering another authentication method deemed much more efficient. A small decision in appearance, but which marks a big turning point for millions of users around the world.
This transformation is based on a clear will: strengthen security while simplifying access to services. Microsoft adopts passkeysa much more robust authentication system. It is a process that is based on a unique cryptographic key, recorded locally on the user’s device and protected by biometric methods such as fingerprint or facial recognition. Unlike passwords, these keys cannot be guessed, stolen by phishing or intercepted in compromised databases.
-End of passwords at Microsoft: Place at Passkeys
The change does not only concern Windows. All Microsoft’s infrastructure follows this movement: the Xbox consoles, the Office 365 suite or the Copilot assistant now support this new method. The connection interface was even redesigned to highlight these so -called “password” options. The firm does not impose anything on the old users, but strongly encourages them to switch to this system, by allowing the voluntary deletion of the password via the parameters of the account.
It must be said that the pressure is strong. In 2024, Microsoft recorded up to 7000 attacks by password each second. At this rate, even a long and complex password no longer guarantees real protection. In comparison, the Passkeys display a 98 % connection success rate and are eight times faster to use than a password associated with two -step verification. The equation seems obvious: more security and more comfort of use.
For those who are not yet ready to cross the course, solutions exist. The use of a password manager remains a good short -term alternative. But Microsoft assures it: in the long term, its objective is to make the passwords of its ecosystem disappear. To illustrate this change of course, the firm even renamed the World Password Day in “World Access Key Day”. The message is clear: passwords are over!
