Now that the Windows 10 October 2018 Update is ready to be rolled out again, Microsoft is looking to the future again. Today, the company reports that Edge web browser now allows users to log in to key Microsoft services without a password.
Microsoft Edge on Windows 10, version 1809, supports WebAuthn, the W3C standard for passwordless login to websites. Competitive browsers Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox already support this, so Edge takes another step to keep up with the competition.
Login with Edge
WebAuthn allows users to log into Edge using biometric techniques. Think of facial recognition or a fingerprint. These can be registered in Windows Hello, but also in other FIDO2-compliant software, including YubiKey from Yubeco and the BioPass key from Feitian.
This means that Windows users will soon be able to login to a range of different Microsoft apps and sites and do so via Microsoft Edge. Thanks to the update, users no longer have to worry that if they are the victim of a hacking attack or a successful phishing attempt, their passwords have been captured.
Different services
The new login method allows users to login to the following Microsoft services: Outlook.com, Office 365, Skype, OneDrive, Cortana, Microsoft Edge, Xbox Live on the PC, Mixer, Microsoft Store, Bing and MSN. Microsoft is the first company to support password-free authentication with the FIDO2 WebAuthn and CTAP2 specifications, and Microsoft Edge supports a wide range of authentication tools compared to other major browsers,” said Alex Simons, vice president of program management at the Microsoft Identity Division.
To login to a Microsoft Account with a security key that meets the requirements, users must browse to Edge’s Microsoft account page and log in as they would normally do. Users can then select the Security option and choose the More security options option. There you will find the necessary instructions for setting up the password-free login.
This news article was automatically translated from Dutch to give Techzine.eu a head start. All news articles after September 1, 2019 are written in native English and NOT translated. All our background stories are written in native English as well. For more information read our launch article.