Author: Clark Smith
PayPal is introducing a new feature that makes it easier for Apple users to log in to the platform. Passkeys, a form of cryptographic technology, will be available to other OS in the coming months.
The new passkey feature acts as a different login method for PayPal accounts, allowing iPad, iPhone, & Mac users to sign in without a password.
What are Passkeys?
Passkeys, which operate through cryptographic pairs, were developed by the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium. According to the two organizations, passkeys are resistant to phishing attacks and ensure there is no data exchange between the two platforms.
“Integrating passkeys in PayPal is vital to our commitment to providing our users with simple and secure methods to access and handle their financial lives,” Doug Bland, Head of Consumer at PayPal.
“We’re excited to offer our customers a more streamlined checkout process that eliminates the use of weak and reused passwords and the dilemma of trying to remember a long-forgotten credential. We plan to continue creating the perfect online shopping experience,” he added.
How Do They Work?
Passkeys are designed to replace regular passwords with cryptographic key pairs. The pair consists of a private key stored on your phone and a public key stored in the cloud servers. Both are stored separately to ensure that a compromised service can’t provide account access to an attacker.
One significant benefit of passkey technology is that it supports a range of authentication methods, such as face recognition, fingerprint scanning, PIN codes, and swipe patterns. The downside, however, is that – passkeys reside on local devices, which means logging in with a foreign device may be much more complicated.
That, undoubtedly, reinforces the security of passkeys as being safer than your regular passwords.
How Can I Create My Passkey?
Apple users with devices supporting iOS 16, iPad OS 16.1, or macOS Ventura can create their passkeys by visiting the PayPal platform, typing their account details, and selecting the “Create a passkey” option.
PayPal requires users to verify their identity through Apple Touch ID or Apple Face ID before creating the passkey, which will be synced with other Apple devices through the iCloud Keychain service upon creation.
Additionally, iPhone users with devices that don’t support passkeys can still use an iPhone to sign in with a passkey, but they have to scan a QR code that pops up when they’ve entered their usernames.
Paypal passkeys have already begun rolling out for U.S customers. According to the company, the new authentication feature will be available in other countries in 2023. PayPal also says the feature would spread beyond Apple’s operating systems as soon as they “begin integrating support for passkeys.”
Summary
PayPal is now one of the only payment processing platforms to integrate passkeys. The risks of reusing passwords online make the widespread implementation of passkey technology a must. One study confirms that: of the 2.6B stolen records in 2017, 81% were accessed using a stolen or guessed password.