Passwordless authentication provides better user experience than password authentication since users will not have to follow complex password policies, create passwords that are too complicated to remember, and then change them from time to time as required by the applications. Nevertheless, authentication methods using possession and inherence factors are still much more secure than password authentication. Some also argue that a few passwordless authentication, such as magic link, OTPs, and authenticator apps, are not entirely passwordless since in order to verify their identities through these methods, users still need to log into their email accounts or devices with their usernames and passwords. Nonetheless, it is still possible for hackers to gain remote access to the hardware to physically steal the hardware. It checks if the user has the approved piece of hardware, making it much harder than the knowledge factor to crack. These are the credentials that users have with them, such as a security token or a mobile phone that can receive codes from an authentication app, OTPs through Telegram, or WhatsApp, etc. When they want to log into different software or applications, the system will compare the presented physiological data with the ones stored in the database to verify their identities.Īlthough hackers have found their ways to spoof some of the biometric data, behavioral factors are still hard to replicate, making biometric authentication much more secure than password authentication. When users create new accounts, their physical characteristics will be scanned and analyzed to create digital copies that will be stored in the database. Biometric authentication is the technology that utilizes these factors to verify a user’s identity.

Inherence factors are factors inherent to individuals such as fingerprint, voice, and retina, and therefore users do not have to memorize them.

These factors, namely inherence factors and possession factors, are thought to be more secure than knowledge factors since knowledge factors can be easily stolen or forgotten. What Are The Factors Used For Passwordless Authentication?ĭifferent types of passwordless authentication rely on different authentication credentials or factors.

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