Criterion sc1
Increasing practical day-to-day sign-in usability for typical users when products make passkeys the default.
Null: When products make passkeys the default, this would have no relevant impact on practical day-to-day sign-in usability for typical users.
No linked atoms.
When products make passkeys the default, this would increase practical day-to-day sign-in usability mildly because many users can approve access with familiar device biometrics, even though some flows remain somewhat cumbersome.
| Atom | Weight |
|---|---|
| Passkeys are unlocked using device biometric methods such as Face ID or fingerprint scanning, often letting users sign in without remembering a password, especially on synced devices in the same ecosystem, similar to Apple Pay and phone unlocking. | 0.338ω=0.88 |
| Chrome integrates passkey support with its password manager, enabling passkeys to be synchronized across a user's devices. | 0.267ω=0.96 |
| Apple's ecosystem can sync passkeys across a user's devices in many cases. | 0.251ω=0.96 |
| A memorized password can be entered on any phone or laptop with a keyboard, allowing access even if the user's primary device is lost or stolen. | -0.233 |
| Passkeys are stored on a device, hardware key, or synced vault such as an operating system, browser, or third-party manager rather than in a user's memory; many users do not know where their passkey resides or lack backup access, so losing that device or vault without backup can lock them out of accounts that rely on that passkey. | -0.204ω=0.75 |
| The WebAuthn protocol has undergone multiple iterations and is considered production-ready. | 0.187ω=0.91 |
| Password-manager applications are widely used and often require users to copy-paste passwords, but can suffer from field-recognition failures and mismatched or differing URLs. | 0.116ω=0.55 |
| Passkeys are being adopted by all companies. | 0.028ω=0.10 |
When products make passkeys the default, this would increase practical day-to-day sign-in usability moderately because routine authentication is often simpler than typing, storing, or pasting passwords and avoids many password-manager field and URL problems.
| Atom | Weight |
|---|---|
| Passkeys are unlocked using device biometric methods such as Face ID or fingerprint scanning, often letting users sign in without remembering a password, especially on synced devices in the same ecosystem, similar to Apple Pay and phone unlocking. | 0.541ω=0.88 |
| Chrome integrates passkey support with its password manager, enabling passkeys to be synchronized across a user's devices. | 0.464ω=0.96 |
| Apple's ecosystem can sync passkeys across a user's devices in many cases. | 0.448ω=0.96 |
| A memorized password can be entered on any phone or laptop with a keyboard, allowing access even if the user's primary device is lost or stolen. | -0.350 |
| The WebAuthn protocol has undergone multiple iterations and is considered production-ready. | 0.334ω=0.91 |
| Passkeys are stored on a device, hardware key, or synced vault such as an operating system, browser, or third-party manager rather than in a user's memory; many users do not know where their passkey resides or lack backup access, so losing that device or vault without backup can lock them out of accounts that rely on that passkey. | -0.308ω=0.75 |
| Password-manager applications are widely used and often require users to copy-paste passwords, but can suffer from field-recognition failures and mismatched or differing URLs. | 0.199ω=0.55 |
| Passkeys can replace separate two-factor authentication by incorporating the second factor into the credential, making 2FA obsolete. | 0.152ω=0.70 |
| Support for passkeys varies across browsers, PWAs, devices, websites, and platforms, producing inconsistent experiences and making migration between ecosystems or passkey managers sometimes clumsy or impossible, especially in mixed-device setups. | -0.145ω=0.70 |
| Many sites that offer passkeys still retain a password or SMS code as a backup authentication or recovery method. | -0.096ω=0.40 |
| Passkeys are being adopted by all companies. | 0.044ω=0.10 |
When products make passkeys the default, this would increase practical day-to-day sign-in usability strongly because most routine sign-ins become almost the same interaction as phone unlocking or Apple Pay and remove most password-entry friction.
| Atom | Weight |
|---|---|
| Passkeys are unlocked using device biometric methods such as Face ID or fingerprint scanning, often letting users sign in without remembering a password, especially on synced devices in the same ecosystem, similar to Apple Pay and phone unlocking. | 0.788ω=0.88 |
| Chrome integrates passkey support with its password manager, enabling passkeys to be synchronized across a user's devices. | 0.677ω=0.96 |
| Apple's ecosystem can sync passkeys across a user's devices in many cases. | 0.661ω=0.96 |
| The WebAuthn protocol has undergone multiple iterations and is considered production-ready. | 0.511ω=0.91 |
| A memorized password can be entered on any phone or laptop with a keyboard, allowing access even if the user's primary device is lost or stolen. | -0.500 |
| Passkeys are stored on a device, hardware key, or synced vault such as an operating system, browser, or third-party manager rather than in a user's memory; many users do not know where their passkey resides or lack backup access, so losing that device or vault without backup can lock them out of accounts that rely on that passkey. | -0.454ω=0.75 |
| Password-manager applications are widely used and often require users to copy-paste passwords, but can suffer from field-recognition failures and mismatched or differing URLs. | 0.278ω=0.55 |
| Passkeys can replace separate two-factor authentication by incorporating the second factor into the credential, making 2FA obsolete. | 0.241ω=0.70 |
| Support for passkeys varies across browsers, PWAs, devices, websites, and platforms, producing inconsistent experiences and making migration between ecosystems or passkey managers sometimes clumsy or impossible, especially in mixed-device setups. | -0.231ω=0.70 |
| Passwords are the de facto standard authentication method today, but they are vulnerable to attacks and considered less secure than passkeys. | 0.217ω=0.85 |
| Native apps distributed via app stores can implement passkey authentication with full control, bypassing browser integration constraints. | 0.175ω=0.85 |
| Authenticator apps for two-factor authentication are familiar to many users, but they can create access problems if the device storing the secret is lost before the secret is synchronized elsewhere. | -0.154ω=0.70 |
| Many sites that offer passkeys still retain a password or SMS code as a backup authentication or recovery method. | -0.153ω=0.40 |
| Passkeys are being adopted by all companies. | 0.062ω=0.10 |