TikTok announced it is adding support for Passkeys to its social media app for iOS, allowing users to sign in without passwords. Apple introduced passkeys for iPhone with the release of iOS 16 last year, and the feature is also supported on iPadOS 16, macOS Ventura, and tvOS 16.
However, Passkeys are a passwordless authentication standard developed by the FIDO Alliance and World Wide Web Consortium. Google also started rolling out passkeys support for Android and ChromeOS in October 2022. Earlier this year, the security feature was expanded to Google accounts as well.
A replacement for traditional passwords, Passkeys are meant to authenticate account logins using a combination of cryptography techniques and biometric methods such as Face ID and Touch ID. Apple explains that a passkey consists of a key pair: a public key that remains with the website or app you"re using, and a private key that is stored on your devices.
It adds that Passkeys are "never guessable by a hacker" making them a strong alternative to passwords. A passkey is tied to the app or website it was created for and can"t be used to sign in to a fraudulent website or app. While passkeys can be synced across devices via iCloud Keychain, the private key and biometric authentication data are never shared with a third-party website or app such as TikTok.
Passkeys offer added protection against phishing, social engineering, server leaks, and device theft. According to the FIDO Alliance, they can be a better option over combinations like “password + OTP” or “password + phone approval.”
TikTok said it will roll out passkeys for iOS in Asia, Africa, Australia, and South America, starting this month and more regions and operating systems will be added in the future. You can set up TikTok Passkey on your iPhone by heading over to the Account page in the app. Here, tap on the Passkey option and follow the steps. The TikTok app will prompt you to log in through the saved passkey when you log in the next time.