Microsoft is becoming even more passkey-friendly Credit: Photo illustration by Cheng Xin/Getty Images Think of something you'll remember forever, something so close to your heart or brain that you wouldn't have to write it down to keep it top of mind. You'll have to type it out every day for 30 days. It has to have 15 characters, an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, a symbol, and a number. The numbers cannot be consecutive. It cannot be similar to anything you've ever said before. You will have to recall this secret code constantly or risk being locked out of every device and subscription you need. Of course, we're talking about your password, and it is a nightmare. Now, Microsoft wants to get rid of passwords entirely. The company announced this week that moving forward, all new Microsoft accounts will be "passwordless by default."According to a May 1 post on Microsoft's blog, the move is part of a "journey toward passwordless sign-in." Instead of using a password to sign on, Microsoft wants you to use a passkey, which could be a PIN or a biometric option such as facial recognition or a fingerprint scan. (That sounds a lot better than Sam Altman's eyeball-scanning machine, The Orb.) Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up! "[Users] signing in with passkeys are three times more successful at getting into their account than password users (about 98% versus 32%)," the blog post reads. "When you use a passkey, you get into your account much quicker too! Passkey sign-ins are eight times faster than a password and multifactor authentication."So not only will signing in be less annoying, but it will also be more efficient, Microsoft argues. Related Stories "As part of this simplified UX, we’re changing the default behavior for new accounts. Brand new Microsoft accounts will now be 'passwordless by default,'" Microsoft wrote in its blog post. "New users will have several passwordless options for signing into their account and they’ll never need to enroll a password. Existing users can visit their account settings to delete their password."Microsoft isn't the only tech company moving towards passkey-friendly logins. Amazon, Google, and WhatsApp are all also working towards it. Topics Cybersecurity Christianna Silva Senior Culture Reporter Christianna Silva is a senior culture reporter covering social platforms and the creator economy, with a focus on the intersection of social media, politics, and the economic systems that govern us. Since joining Mashable in 2021, they have reported extensively on meme creators, content moderation, and the nature of online creation under capitalism. Before joining Mashable, they worked as an editor at NPR and MTV News, a reporter at Teen Vogue and VICE News, and as a stablehand at a mini-horse farm. You can follow her on Bluesky @christiannaj.bsky.social and Instagram @christianna_j.