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What do I need to use passkey

Passkey is the future easy way of authentication, but some requirements need to be in place for it to work. Here you find what you need.

Requirements: For passkeys to work, you need the following:

Device Requirements:
A smartphone, tablet, or computer running a recent operating system

  • iOS 16 or later for Apple devices
  • Android 9 (Pie) or higher for Android device
  • Windows 10 or later for Microsoft device
  • macOS Ventura or later for Mac computers
A supported web browser on you device:
  • Chrome 109 or later
  • Safari 16 or later
  • Edge 109 or later
  • Firefox 122 or later

Important activated system features:

  • Biometric authentication capability
    (fingerprint sensor, facial recognition) or a device PIN/pattern lock
  • Screen lock enabled on your device
  • Bluetooth enabled (for cross-device authentication)

Important activated account settings

For Apple devices: iCloud Keychain must be turned on

For Google accounts: You need to be signed in to Chrome with your Google Account across devices

For some services, you may need to have 2-Step verification or be enrolled in an advanced protection program. The issuance of a qualified electronic signature is bound to the use of a 2-Factor-Authentication under sole control by you only. Hence the use of only one-factor based password managers to maintain your passkeys is not allowed.

Creating a Passkey: To create a passkey, you typically need to:

  1. Go to the signing application or website using your existing credentials.
    In signing workflow you will be guided form the partner signing application flow to the authentication step provided by Swisscom. While registering for electronically signing you are offered to select passkey as your preferred authentication means.
  2. Select passkey from the offered authentication means.
    You will be asked, if you already do have a passkey, if you deny you will automatically register by creating a new passkey.
  3. Follow the prompts to create and save the passkey using your device's authentication method.

Passkey are managed by your browser and operating system. So it depends on offered choice of options and your selection, where the actual passkey is stored and only accessible by you.

Where to safe your passkey: Device vs. Cloud

Passkeys that are only saved on the device are not synchronised across devices and can therefore only be used for login on this specific device. However, if you save them in your cloud keychain, you can use them on all devices that are logged into your account - for example, Google or iCloud.
If you normally log in to an online service using your mobile phone, you have probably also created and saved your passkey on it. If you now access the same online service on your computer, you can still use your mobile phone for authentication. In most cases, you will receive a push notification on your device when you log in. You then confirm the login request using biometrics or a PIN.
However, there may be problems if you use devices with different operating systems.
However, you can use password managers from external passkey providers or the cloud-based solutions from Google, Apple etc. and store all passkeys - regardless of the operating system - in one place.