Ditch your Google password and set up a passkey instead

Tired of passwords? Good news! Following Apple and Microsoft, Google has also taken a step forward to the password-free era, introducing the pass key feature for all personal account users.

If you don't know the pass key yet, now is a good time to learn. This new feature allows you to log in to your Google account using only PIN code or biometric information (such as face or fingerprint) and say goodbye to annoying passwords from now on! If you are interested in this, read on to learn how to enable a pass key for your Google account.

How to set a pass key for your Google account

Please note that the current pass key is only applicable to individual users, and Google Workspace accounts do not support it yet. To experience the Pass Key, visit your Google Account page and find the Security option in the left sidebar.

In the How to log in to Google section, click Pass Key and enter your password to verify - this may be the last time you have used it. On the next screen, you will see a blue button that says Start using the pass key . Click on it and it's done! Google will create the necessary pass key and automatically save your private key to your device. Next time you log in, you only need to use one of the authentication methods you have set up for your computer or phone: facial recognition, fingerprint recognition, or personal identification code (PIN).

[Related Reading: How to Protect Your Google Account Security]

If you have logged your Android device into your account, you will also see them in the Pass Key menu. Google will automatically create these pass keys for you so that you can seamlessly access information on these devices.

You can also use the pass key as a backup to authenticate on other computers or smartphones. For example, if you want to log into your account on the borrowed laptop, you can choose your phone as the authentication method. Then just follow the prompts on your phone.

Some precautions

Overall, your Google Pass key should work smoothly, but you may have some minor issues as this technology is relatively new. Pass keys use a standard called WebAuthentication, which creates a set of two related keys: one remains in the hands of the service you are trying to log in (in this case Google), and the other private key is stored locally on your device .

This dual nature of the pass key makes it extremely secure because the service will never see your private key – it just needs to know that you have it. However, if you have multiple devices running different operating systems, the fact that your pass key fragment is stored locally can cause some problems.

The user experience of the Apple ecosystem will be smoother. Apple uses iCloud keychain to sync users' pass keys, so as long as you log in to the same iCloud account, your private key will exist on your MacBook, iPhone, and iPad at the same time. But if you also add a Windows computer or Android phone, the situation becomes complicated - you may need to use a second device to verify your identity. At this time, the backup device mentioned above comes in handy.

[Related reading: Log out of your online account immediately to ensure account security]

We hope to finally achieve full integration between operating systems, and we can log in to all accounts regardless of the device and operating system you use. Before that, you can try using a pass key to see if it's right for you. At the worst case, you can put it aside and use a password manager to remember your credentials instead.

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