Microsoft makes password changes, starting August.
It should come as no surprise that Microsoft wants Windows users to change how they perceive and use passwords. That was made quite clear when the Seattle tech behemoth announced that it was blocking 7,000 attacks on passwords every second and looking to get a billion users to change to passkeys instead. With state-sponsored hackers targeting Windows passwords, automatic password hacking machines, and even printers, yes, printers, being employed to target Windows passwords, something needed to be done.
Now, Microsoft has confirmed that it is making significant changes to Microsoft Authenticator: in June, you stopped being able to add new passwords, during July, you will no longer be able to use the autofill feature, and, from August, saved passwords won’t be accessible and any generated passwords that have not been saved will be deleted.
The Changes to Microsoft Password Management
You might be wondering just what is happening at Microsoft that has caused this seismic shift in password management, and truth be told, those attack figures and links above pretty much explain it all. Something has to be done, and when it comes to Microsoft Authenticator, that something is to persuade you to embrace the password management functionality of the Edge browser. Microsoft itself has stated that “your saved passwords (but not your generated password history) and addresses are securely synced to your Microsoft account, and you can continue to access them and enjoy seamless autofill functionality with Microsoft Edge.”
Here’s the important part, and it points to the desire to get all users employing the much more secure passkey technology that is available to Windows users, Microsoft Authenticator will continue to support passkeys. Indeed, Microsoft has reminded users that if they have passkeys set up for their Microsoft account, then they must “ensure that Authenticator remains enabled as your passkey provider — disabling Authenticator will disable your passkeys.”
Act Now To Save Your Microsoft Passwords
What you need to do first, then, is to ensure that you have saved your passwords before the end of the month. If you don’t wish to use Microsoft Edge to access them, you can use another platform, such as Google or Apple’s iCloud Keychain, as your default autofill provider. To do this, however, you will need to export your passwords and import them to the new service. However, this exporting must be completed before August 1, as although your saved passwords will still be seen in Edge, they will no longer be accessible in Microsoft Authenticator, so you won’t be able to export them anywhere else.