WhatsApp users on Android can say goodbye to insecure and annoying two-factor authentication via SMS. The company owned by Meta announced in X (formerly Twitter) which is rolling out support for a passwordless passcode feature to all Android users. The new security option allows WhatsApp users to use their device’s face, fingerprint or PIN security to unlock and access their accounts, following Google’s lead when it started asking users last week to create access keys.
WhatsApp was already testing the access codes in its beta channel, but now they are reaching regular users of the application on Android. We reached out to Meta about iOS compatibility and other questions, but the company has not responded at this time.
With WhatsApp adding support for passcodes, it’s a small step on the path to never having to memorize a password that could be stolen in a data breach or compromised by phishing. That doesn’t mean WhatsApp’s more than 2 billion users are completely protected from all digital threats, but it should help make things easier and more secure for both those who already have good password habits and those who still have. They set their passwords to “12345”. (Strange, I have the same combination in my luggage).
