Envision attempting to recall something so crucial that you never jot it down—something ingrained in your mind, near to your heart or intellect. Now, picture having to input that precise phrase every single day for an entire month. It must consist of 15 characters, featuring an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, a symbol, and a numeral—but without consecutive numbers. It shouldn’t bear resemblance to anything you’ve previously utilized. Misremember it once, and you run the risk of being locked out of your devices, accounts, and subscriptions.

Indeed, we’re discussing passwords—and they’ve turned into a daily annoyance. However, Microsoft is striving to alter that.

This week, Microsoft revealed a significant transformation: moving forward, all new Microsoft accounts will be “passwordless by default.”

As per a May 1 update on Microsoft’s official blog, this initiative is a part of their larger endeavor to eradicate passwords in favor of a more secure and user-friendly solution: passkeys. Rather than entering a complicated password, users will log in using a PIN or biometric authentication, such as facial recognition or a fingerprint scan. (A far more attractive alternative than, for instance, scanning your eye with a gadget like Sam Altman’s Orb.)

“Users logging in with passkeys are three times more likely to successfully access their accounts compared to those using passwords—98% success rate versus 32%,” the blog notes. “Passkey sign-ins are also eight times quicker than traditional password and multi-factor authentication methods.”

In other terms, Microsoft asserts that eliminating passwords won’t merely simplify logging in—it’ll also speed it up and enhance security.

“As part of this streamlined user experience, we’re modifying the default behavior for new accounts,” the company clarified. “From this point forward, brand-new Microsoft accounts will be passwordless by default. New users will have various passwordless sign-in choices and won’t be required to create or remember a password. Existing users can also access their account settings and opt to delete their password if they wish.”

Microsoft is not alone in this movement towards a password-free horizon. Other tech behemoths like Amazon, Google, and WhatsApp are likewise adopting passkey technology to simplify and secure user authentication.

The password may soon become obsolete—and for many of us, that’s a much-anticipated transition.