Passwords remain the most common form of authentication, despite being a leading cause of breaches. As Microsoft notes, “There are over 4,000 password attacks every second,” and most compromises begin with a stolen or reused password. Industry leaders are pushing toward passwordless authentication:
- Microsoft will ask people signing up for new accounts to only use more secure methods like passkeys, push notifications, and security keys, by default for all new accounts in 2025
- Apple now supports passkey syncing across devices via iCloud
- 1Password enabled support for unlocking your vault with passkeys since 2023
Yet, real-world adoption is slow fragmented. In an honest review in 2024, Wired writer Matt Burgess said: “I stopped using passwords. It’s great—and a total mess.” He additionally summarized that when it works, it works great. He also detailed a long list of challenges he ran into while setting up passkeys, causing significant user friction. Even though this blog was from 2024, not much has changed.
We are moving toward a passwordless future, but today’s reality is a hybrid authentication world—one where passwords, passkeys, tokens, and fallback options coexist. While passwordless tools like passkeys promise simplicity, they introduce a different kind of operational complexity. On the surface, passkeys appear easier: No memorization, phishing-resistant, device-bound. But enterprises need to implement different practices to ensure passkeys are securely managed:
| Method | Additional Security Practices Required |
| Passkeys (FIDO2/WebAuthn) | Device syncing, backup keys, credential recovery |
| Biometrics (e.g., Face ID, Windows Hello) | User enrollment, multi-device linking, revocation |
| Magic Links / OTP Codes | Email/phone security, expiration control |
| Security Keys (e.g., YubiKeys) | Physical custody, loss protocols, provisioning |
| Federated SSO (Google, Microsoft, etc.) | Identity provider drift, session integrity |
Another blog from Microsoft reflected how Passkeys are not silver bullets. “The passkey lifecycle introduces vulnerabilities during registration, account recovery, fallback authentication, step-ups, and cross-device enrollment. In these scenarios users may be required to authenticate with their legacy login method (passwords, OTPs, etc.). There’s little to stop fraudsters from registering a passkey on a new device or taking over accounts.” Recovery is also a challenge: “If you lose access to your synced devices, you’re basically locked out unless you have a recovery mechanism in place.” — Wired
So yes, passwordless reduces the overhead of traditional password hygiene, but doesn’t eliminate identity credential management—it just evolves it. According to the FIDO Alliance, “Over 8.4 billion accounts now support passkeys,” but fallback passwords are still widely used in most deployments. A 2025 overview from AuthSignal shows that while passkey adoption is up 550% year-over-year, more than 60% of websites with passkey support still allow password fallback.
The result? A hybrid threat surface: legacy systems still require passwords, devices rely on fallback credentials, and syncing trust is offloaded to Apple, Google, or Microsoft. This technical reality and industry pressure has left identity security leaders with no choice but to continue moving towards passwordless while maintaining legacy password management. IASM solutions like Hydden enable organizations to adopt passwordless securely while navigating the messiness of hybrid authentication.
