The tech giant will now let users create passkeys to access personal accounts, touting it as a “more convenient and safer alternative to passwords,” it said in a release Wednesday. If users activate the feature, the system will use a fingerprint, facial recognition or a lock screen PIN instead of a password or two-step verification to authenticate their identity. (The Logic)

Talking point: The passkey is stored locally on a computer or mobile device and the biometric data isn’t shared with Google; it is only used to unlock the local passkey. Google is a member of the FIDO Alliance, a group that’s been pushing to move beyond passwords for years, and the company agreed on a common passkey standard with Microsoft and Apple last May. Toronto-based 1Password—also a FIDO member— has similar plans. It bought ID authentication startup Passage last year to build tools for managing passkeys and will be able to store passkeys in June, 1Password spokesperson Caitlin Gribbons told The Logic in an email.