Passkey Guide

What is a passkey

A passkey is a modern replacement for passwords. Instead of typing a password, you sign in by confirming your identity with your fingerprint, face, or device passcode.

Compared with passwords, passkeys have several fundamental advantages:

• Phishing-resistant: a passkey is bound to the site's domain and simply will not be offered on a lookalike site.
• Unaffected by site breaches: the site only stores a public key; the private key stays on your device and in KeyMe Pass, so a leaked public key is useless to an attacker.
• Nothing to remember: there is no password to guess, reuse, or write on a sticky note.

KeyMe Pass can act as your passkey manager: passkeys you create are stored in KeyMe Pass and synced to your other devices with end-to-end encryption.

Before you start

1. Set KeyMe Pass as the default autofill service in system settings (on Android, also enable it under "Passkeys, passwords and data services"). See the Autofill Guide for setup steps.
2. Make sure your device has a screen lock (fingerprint, face, or PIN/passcode) — the system requires one before passkeys can be used.
3. Check that your OS version meets the device and OS requirements below.

Device and OS requirements

Passkeys rely on newer system capabilities. Requirements per platform:

• Android: Android 14 or later, and the system must include the Credential Manager framework.
• iOS / iPadOS: iOS 17 or later.
• macOS: macOS 14 or later, and only in Safari and native apps (Chrome, Edge and Firefox do not integrate with the macOS system pipeline).
• HarmonyOS Next: signing in with passkeys is not supported yet (the OS has not exposed the required APIs).

Android device compatibility (important)

Even on Android 14 or later, some devices still cannot use passkeys. Passkeys depend on Google's Credential Manager framework, which is not present on every Android device:

• Huawei devices with HMS only (no Google Mobile Services) cannot use passkeys.
• Some China-market ROMs ship a reduced version of the framework or omit the selection UI, so passkeys may be unavailable or behave unexpectedly.
• International models, Pixel devices, and most devices with Google services work normally.

KeyMe Pass detects whether your device is supported. If it is not, the passkey page in the app shows a notice banner and the feature is unavailable — this is a device and OS limitation, not a KeyMe Pass fault.

On unsupported devices you can still view and manage passkeys synced from your other devices; you just cannot sign in with them.

Creating a passkey

On a site or app that supports passkeys:

1. Go to your account's security settings and choose "Create a passkey", "Add passkey" or similar (some sites offer it during sign-up).
2. When the system picker appears, choose KeyMe Pass as the storage location.
3. Confirm with your fingerprint, face, or device passcode.
4. The new passkey appears under the Passkeys category in KeyMe Pass and syncs to your other devices.

Signing in with a passkey

1. On the sign-in page, choose "Sign in with a passkey", or tap the account field to see suggestions.
2. Pick the matching account from the system picker.
3. Confirm with your fingerprint, face, or device passcode — you are signed in, with no password typed.

Management and sync

Passkeys in KeyMe Pass get the same protection as your passwords and IDs:

• End-to-end encrypted sync: passkeys are encrypted before syncing to your other devices, so switching phones does not lose them. The server cannot decrypt them.
• Central management: the "Passkeys" category lists every passkey with its site and account, and lets you delete them.
• Note on deletion: deleting a passkey in KeyMe Pass does not remove the record on the website. To unlink it completely, also remove the passkey in that site's account security settings.

FAQ

The site says my passkey is invalid or will not work. What now?

Go to that site's account security settings, delete the existing passkey and create a new one. We also recommend deleting the stale entry in KeyMe Pass so it no longer clutters the picker.

Why doesn't KeyMe Pass appear as an option when signing in?

Check the following in order:

• Is KeyMe Pass set as the system default autofill / passkey service?
• Does your device meet the OS version and compatibility requirements above?
• Does the site or app actually support passkeys?
• On macOS, are you using Safari? Other browsers do not integrate with the system pipeline.

Will passkeys replace my passwords?

Not by force. Most sites currently support both, so you can keep passwords alongside passkeys and migrate gradually. KeyMe Pass manages and fills both.

Can I export my passkeys?

For security reasons, passkey private keys are not included in data export files. To move to a new device, use sync — your passkeys are encrypted and synced to the new device automatically.

Known limitations

• Passkey support is currently in Beta and still improving.
• Android: requires Android 14+ with Credential Manager; unavailable on HMS-only Huawei devices and some China-market ROMs (see above).
• macOS: available only in Safari and native apps.
• HarmonyOS Next: passkeys can be viewed and managed, but not used to sign in.
• Site-side passkey support varies; some implementations are still maturing.