Passkeys

[Geffers]

There is a push to replace passwords with passkeys, apparently safer. I'm guessing they work similar to https or ssh connections whereby a public and private key pair are created, both needed for the encrypted connection but the private key never leaves one's device.

Now this 'never leaves one's device' is an area of concern with mobile phones as I understand it is backed up on android and apple's cloud. I must admit mobiles do confuse me a wee bit, I am pretty au fait with laptop and desktop computers but my Android system is a mystery, I confess half the time I have no idea if I am viewing a file on my device or via the cloud, aircraft mode would cut out network files but then many items are on the device and backed up somewhere, plus of course the cache comes in to the equation too.

As I often say, one's data is perfectly secure, until it isn't.

Geffers

 

[Retro]

I'm not so keen on them myself. I'm quite capable of creating, storing and using secure passwords. This ensures I can log into the account on any device and if my one is stolen, the thief can't access the accounts.

I agree, I don't like when the location of critical resources like one's data is virtualised either, hiding its true location. It's ok on Apple though, as things like photos are in the Photos app, general files in Files and so on and then backed up to iCloud. Keep that Apple account secure though, or someone could log into iCloud and delete your data so next time your iPhone, iPad, Mac etc syncs it all disappears. This issue is the same with Android, Office 365, or any other cloud based system though.

Here's a resource I posted about passkeys if one wants a deep dive into how they work and their pros and cons.

What is a Passkey?

It's based on public / private key cryptography and is explained really well by Ask Leo. It looks like these are the future, eventually replacing passwords altogether as they're more secure. Note that they've been around for decades, just being...

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