Microsoft eliminates the need for passwords with a phone-based login system

In a blog post by its identity division, Microsoft announced that starting today, you no longer require to follow the usual password-based login setup. Microsoft’s Authenticator app now allows you to skip through the password entry entirely. A single click on your phone will grant you access to your Microsoft account, the next time you head for the login process.

In order to save your precious few seconds, you’ll require a Microsoft’s Authenticator app on your Android or iOS device. Once you have the app installed, set up an account (only Microsoft’s) on the platform. From the account tile then select the drop-down button and choose the ‘Enable phone sign-in’ option and you’re good to go.

If you already have an account on the Authenticator app, skip the setup process and directly enable the new phone sign-in feature. The app prompts for a setup on a new Android device, while it automatically fastens an account for a fresh iOS user.

After the process completes, you will get a notification asking your approval for login. You can approve the login by tapping on the approve button given alongside the notification.

Announcing the new login measure, Alex Simons, Partner Director of Program Management, Microsoft Identity Division wrote,

With phone sign-in, we’re shifting the security burden from your memory to your device. This process is easier than standard two-step verification and significantly more secure than only a password, which can be forgotten, phished, or compromised.Using a device to sign in is new to you, and it’s new to us, too.

Currently, the app only works on iOS and Android and skips on Windows 10 Mobile, considering the low density of the active users on the platform. However, the company says that if the setup process is a success, it’ll launch the app for Windows users as well.

The feature is significantly useful in cases of sudden demise or loss of your device. You need not memorize various passwords but can hold onto a single app password. Obviously, losing a smartphone and re-navigating access to a single account isn’t horrible but losing a phone and having to get back into ten or more accounts is another issue entirely.