Illustration: The Verge
WhatsApp users on Android can say goodbye to insecure and annoying SMS two-factor authentication. The Meta-owned company announced on X (formerly Twitter) that it’s rolling out support for a passwordless passkey feature to all Android users. The new security option allows WhatsApp users to use their device’s face, fingerprint, or pin security to unlock and access their accounts — following Google’s lead when it began prompting users last week to create passkeys.
Passkeys were previously being tested by WhatsApp in its beta channel, but it’s now coming to regular users of the app on Android. We reached out to Meta about iOS compatibility, and while there’s no word yet on support for WhatsApp passkeys on iPhones, Android support will roll out over the coming weeks and months.
Android users can easily and securely log back in with passkeys only your face, finger print, or pin unlocks your WhatsApp account pic.twitter.com/In3OaWKqhy
— WhatsApp (@WhatsApp) October 16, 2023
With WhatsApp adding passkey support, it’s a small step on the road toward never having to memorize a password that could potentially be stolen in a data breach or compromised by phishing. That doesn’t mean WhatsApp’s 2 billion-plus users are completely protected from all digital threats, but it should help make things easier and more secure for both those who already have good password habits and those who still set their passwords to “12345.” (Strange, I’ve got the same combination on my luggage.)
Update October 16th, 5:06PM ET: Added clarification on iOS support and the timeline of the rollout.
