Microsoft is working towards a password-less future, citing “bad actors” as the primary reason for its push. The company’s billion users are at risk due to increasingly sophisticated attacks that target weak passwords. To address this, Microsoft plans to replace passwords with passkeys, which offer improved security and user experiences.
Passkeys will enable faster sign-ins using facial recognition, fingerprints, or PINs, eliminating forgotten passwords and one-time codes. However, widespread adoption faces challenges, according to the UK government’s cybersecurity authority. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) outlines ten critical issues hindering mass adoption, including inconsistent support, device loss scenarios, migration issues, and platform differences.
To overcome these hurdles, Microsoft is working with technology providers, financial institutions, and secure-by-design industries to develop a unified solution. The company is taking a cautious approach, testing user studies to determine the best way to motivate users to enroll in passkeys. Ultimately, Microsoft aims to remove passwords completely, replacing them with phishing-resistant credentials.
As the threat landscape evolves with AI-fueled attacks, it’s essential for users to adopt passkey-based authentication to stay secure. With over 1 billion users at stake, Microsoft’s vision of a password-less future is crucial for protecting digital identities and preventing cybercrime.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/zakdoffman/2025/01/21/new-warning-as-microsoft-confirms-password-deletion-for-1-billion-users