Amazon is taking a significant step towards improving user security and convenience by rolling out passkey support for browsers and iOS mobile shopping apps. This new feature enables customers to set up passkeys in their Amazon settings, allowing them to use familiar authentication methods such as their face, fingerprint, or device PIN to access their accounts.
Dave Treadwell, the senior vice president of e-commerce at Amazon, explained that this move aims to offer customers both ease of use and enhanced security in their Amazon experience. While traditional passwords are not going away anytime soon, Amazon sees passkeys as a promising step towards a more secure and passwordless internet.
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This new feature is now available to all Amazon customers using web browsers. It is also gradually being introduced on the iOS Amazon Shopping app, with plans to extend support to the Android version in the near future.
How does Passkey work?
Passkeys have an advantage over traditional passwords as they cannot be easily written down or guessed, reducing the risk of unauthorised access. When a customer uses a passkey on their device, it provides strong proof that they possess the device and can unlock it. This eliminates the need to remember complex passwords or use easily discoverable information like names or birthdays.
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Customers can sign in to apps and websites using passkeys in the same way they unlock their devices, whether through a fingerprint, face scan, or lock screen PIN. This approach offers an added layer of security compared to passwords and one-time codes delivered via text messages, which are susceptible to phishing attacks.
Amazon's move towards passkey support aligns with the broader industry trend of enhancing security while simplifying user authentication.
