If you activate this new WhatsApp feature, it will be almost impossible for your app account to be stolen.

WhatsApp recently announced the introduction of “passkeys,” or access keys, to the app in its iPhone version, which are intended to soon replace the passwords used online. They’ve been available on Android for several months now.

“Verifying your password will make logging into WhatsApp easier and safer. “We’re excited to be able to add this feature to WhatsApp and offer users an additional layer of security,” said Alice Newton-Rex, WhatsApp product manager, in a statement sent to ABC.

Access keys have nothing in common with regular passwords. A cryptographic key is stored inside the device, which exists only in this terminal and provides access to the platform. In order for a user to gain access to your service, he will have to resort to facial recognition or fingerprint reading.

It is worth remembering that until now, when a user opened a WhatsApp account on a new terminal, he had to add a password, which the application itself communicated to the user via SMS. The problem is that criminals know this, which is why they have been trying to trick internet users into sharing them for years without even realizing it.

For example, telling them that they have won a lottery and that in order to receive the prize they need to share a code that will be sent to them in a message. There are also cases where they pretended to be a WhatsApp technical service to do this.

How to activate the feature

With this feature starting to roll out on terminals through an update, WhatsApp users on iOS will be able to log in again using these access keys without having to use an OTP via SMS. Users can enable it in Settings > Account > Passwords.