The most recent version of Google Chrome for Android, Windows 11, and macOS now supports passkeys. The search engine giant started implementing passkey support in October, and it is currently a feature of Google Chrome version 108 on the stable channel. Using passkeys, users may log into websites and applications using an authentication procedure akin to unlocking a device. The business argues that the system protects users against malicious reuse, server leaks or breaches, and phishing assaults and is a more secure alternative to conventional passwords and two-factor authentication techniques.
The search engine giant devised Passkeys to function differently on different operating systems and browser ecosystems. Passkeys made on iOS or in Safari on macOS use the iCloud Keychain for storage, while those created in Chrome on Android use Google Password Manager. According to Google's blog post, Chrome on macOS and Windows presently uses local device storage to store passkeys.
As long as sync is enabled through Google Password Manager on all devices, passkeys produced in Chrome on Android will be accessible across devices.
However, because Chrome for Windows presently uses Windows Hello for storage, passkeys produced there won't be accessible across devices. To allow passkey generation on the local Windows device while logging into a website for the first time, users must additionally scan a QR code with a different device that already has a passkey.
Passwords produced on macOS, which are likewise kept locally, will also not be accessible between devices. In order to allow passkey registration on Chrome for macOS, QR code scanning is also required on first sign-in.
The user's Apple devices will sync passkeys established on iOS 16 and iPad OS 16 so that they may be used by other browsers and apps. On these devices, passkeys will be kept in the iCloud Keychain. According to the blog post, Chrome does not support passkey autofill on iOS 16 or iPad OS 16.
