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Passkey

A FIDO2 credential stored on a phone or computer and synced through the platform, replacing a password entirely.

Passkeys bring hardware-key security to ordinary users without asking them to carry a separate device. The credential is unlocked by face, fingerprint, or device PIN, and it is phishing resistant by design.

The trade-off is that synced passkeys live in a platform account such as Apple, Google, or Microsoft, so that account becomes a dependency. For the highest-privilege roles, device-bound hardware keys remain the stronger choice.

Where this comes up

Passkey sits inside our identity and access work. If you are trying to work out what this means for your own environment rather than in the abstract, that is the page worth reading next, and a short call will get you a straight answer faster than either.

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Related terms

FIDO2 An open authentication standard using public key cryptography, implemented by security keys and passkeys. Passwordless authentication Signing in without a password at all, using a device, biometric, or security key instead. Phishing-resistant MFA Authentication methods that cannot be relayed by a fake login page, because the credential is bound to the real site.

More in identity and access

Access reviewActive DirectoryBreak-glass accountConditional accessConsent phishingDevice complianceDomain controllerEntra ID P2

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