Microsoft has quietly flipped the switch on one of the most significant security upgrades in decades: Windows 11 now fully supports passkeys, a passwordless authentication system that lets you sign into websites and applications using just your face, fingerprint, or device PIN. As first surfaced in Paul Thurrott’s Windows 11 Field Guide coverage on January 4, 2024, the feature is no longer experimental — it’s built into every up‑to‑date Windows 11 PC and ready for daily use.
What passkeys actually do in Windows 11
Passkeys are a replacement for passwords. Instead of typing a string of letters and numbers that can be stolen, guessed, or phished, a passkey uses public‑key cryptography to prove your identity. The private key never leaves your device, and the website or app only ever sees the public key. Even if an attacker compromises a server, they can’t reverse‑engineer your credentials.
On Windows 11, passkeys are anchored to Windows Hello. When you create a passkey on a site like Google, GitHub, or Microsoft accounts, the operating system generates the key pair and secures the private key with your Windows Hello biometrics or PIN. Every subsequent sign‑in prompts a quick Windows Hello verification — look at your camera, touch the fingerprint sensor, or enter your PIN — and you’re logged in.
You can see and manage all your stored passkeys by navigating to Settings > Accounts > Passkeys. The list shows the website or account name, creation date, and a “Delete” button to revoke individual keys. If you’re syncing settings with a Microsoft account, your passkeys can roam across your Windows 11 devices, so you only need to set them up once. (Right now, the sync covers only other Windows 11 PCs, not Android or iOS.)
Why this matters for your daily sign‑ins
Passkeys eliminate the most common attack vectors: phishing, credential stuffing, and brute‑force guessing. Because the private key never leaves your machine, a fake login page has nothing to steal. And because the login challenge is cryptographically tied to the original website’s domain, it’s impossible to be tricked into sending the key to a lookalike site.
For everyday users, that means fewer password reset headaches and a dramatically lower risk of account takeover. The experience is also faster: select a passkey from the autofill prompt, authenticate with Windows Hello, and you’re in. No more “forgot password” emails, no more juggling a password manager that still invites human error.
Power users and IT pros can go a step further. Passkeys stored in Windows Hello are isolated in a hardware‑backed container (TPM 2.0) that is effectively impossible to extract. For organizations enforcing passwordless policies, Windows 11’s passkey support ties directly into Azure AD and Microsoft Intune, where admins can mandate passkey usage, set attestation requirements, and monitor compliance through the same dashboards they already use.
How we got to a passwordless Windows
The road to passkeys started in 2016 with the FIDO2 standard and the WebAuthn API. Apple added passkey support in iOS 16 and macOS Ventura (2022), Google followed in Android and Chrome, and the industry collectively agreed that passwords were a failing strategy. Microsoft had laid the groundwork with Windows Hello back in 2015, but until the 2023 Windows 11 updates, the system lacked a user‑facing passkey management interface and the ability to sync credentials to other devices.
The critical milestone arrived with the Windows 11 2023 Update (version 22H2, “Moment 4”) in late September 2023. Among the features tucked into that cumulative release was the new Settings > Accounts > Passkeys page, backend support for third‑party passkey providers, and a smoother registration flow inside Microsoft Edge (version 117 and later). By January 2024, when Paul Thurrott’s guide formalized the documentation, the ecosystem had matured enough that Microsoft itself began actively pushing passkeys in consumer and enterprise onboarding materials.
Setting up and using passkeys today
If your PC is running Windows 11 with the latest updates, you’re ready. Here’s how to start:
- Check your version. Go to Settings > System > About and confirm you have version 22H2 or higher, with build 22621.2361 or later. (Most machines auto‑update, but you can manually trigger Windows Update if needed.)
- Enable Windows Hello. Under Settings > Accounts > Sign‑in options, set up at least one biometric (face or fingerprint) or a PIN. A PIN is mandatory as a fallback.
- Create a passkey. Visit a supporting site — Google, PayPal, GitHub, and many others now offer passkey creation. Look for the account security or password settings page; if the site detects a capable device, it will present a “Create a passkey” button. Click it, authenticate with Windows Hello, and the key is stored.
- Sign in without a password. On your next visit, choose “Sign in with a passkey” (or the equivalent option). Windows Hello pops up, you verify, and you’re logged in.
Administrators who manage fleets should review the following group policies (or MDM equivalents) to tailor passkey behavior:
- Turn off the passkey manager (User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Microsoft Passkey) — disables the Settings UX entirely.
- Block passkey creation — prevents users from enrolling new passkeys while leaving existing ones functional.
- Require attestation for passkeys — forces the device to prove its identity to the website, useful for high‑security environments.
These policies appear in the August 2023 security baseline and later, so you may need to update your ADMX templates if they aren’t visible.
What to watch next
Passkeys are still in their early mainstream phase, but adoption is accelerating. Microsoft has signaled that future Windows releases will allow passkey sharing with your phone (via Bluetooth or QR code), so you can start a session on a shared PC using the passkey stored on your mobile device. The company is also expanding Edge’s ability to broker passkeys from other operating systems, meaning your Windows Hello‑secured passkey might soon authenticate apps on a Linux virtual machine or even a Steam Deck.
For now, the most immediate change is psychological: the password is no longer the center of your digital identity. Windows 11 has made passwordless authentication as reliable as a lock on your front door, and the industry is finally catching up.