WhatsApp users on Android can say goodbye to insecure and annoying SMS two-factor authentication, writes The Verge.
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.
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.
Olabanji Soledayo, the ESET Nigeria and Ghana cybersecurity evangelist commented that “WhatsApp account takeovers have been a huge problem for both Meta and users for many years. Although the addition of SMS two-step verification was brought in a few years ago to reduce the problem, it still seemed to add enough inconvenience for many to not bother with this feature. This inevitably caused further mishaps as stealing people’s accounts was relatively easy and laid out convincing scams on victim’s contacts. Memorizing passcodes or passwords has long been a problem with people so by taking away this inconvenience, passkeys offer the perfect solution whilst making accounts more robust in the process. All that is required next is for Apple to jump on board too.”
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