4 ms·
Why not call it a private key then, we've been handling those since the 70's. They don't need to be rebranded, they need to be taught in high school with the s
by __MatrixMan__ 4y ago
Why not call it a private key then, we've been handling those since the 70's.
They don't need to be rebranded, they need to be taught in high school with the same words we've always used to talk about them.
- esquivalience 4y agoWhy not call passwords private words? We've been using words even longer. The answer is that they're being used to pass an authentication challenge. Pass + key is no different.
- __MatrixMan__ 4y agoThere's already nomenclature for that too. Auth keys vs signing keys.
- Zetice 4y agoI think the real answer to your question is a) marketing and b) it’s more data than just a private key. It has a private key, but also some other things. Could be clearer for the tech folks though I agree.
- mr_toad 4y agoI guess because historically (before computers) passwords were often shared. Even now a password doesn’t technically need to be private.
- bqmjjx0kac 4y ago"Open sesame"
- 0xCMP 4y agoNeither does a passkey. They've designed the standard to allow sharing the passkey with others.
- JohnFen 4y agoWait, they have?
- CydeWeys 4y agoAre you sure you have the details correct here? This is not generally how public key cryptography works.
- 0xCMP 4y agoFor instance, with Apple you can AirDrop the Passkeys. https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/share-passkeys-passwords-securely-airdrop-iph0dd1796bb/ios#iph461474bab https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/share-passkeys-passwo...
- jephdo 4y agoI think he might be referring to single device vs multi device pass keys https://developers.yubico.com/Passkeys/Passkey_concepts/Single_device_vs_multi_device_credentials.html https://developers.yubico.com/Passkeys/Passkey_concepts/Sing... I wouldn't be surprised if password managers implement sharing between users tho
- romwell 4y ago>Why not call passwords private words? Because the word "password" has been in use for a long time, before computers, for the purpose of physically passing from one place to another. The thing about password wasn't that it is a secret word, it's that it allows you to pass somewhere. Typically, passwords were a shared secret (i.e. not secret). A digital key is typically different from a password in that it's not a word, i.e. not something people can remember a type. It's more like something you have than something you know. In the context of cryptography it makes sense to distinguish keys from passwords, and public keys (used to "lock" data) from private keys (to "unlock" data). The word key is used for that concept because of the semantics of how keys are used. A passkey is an abomination. A key, a-priori, is an object that opens locks; and we already have words for keys that allows you to pass somewhere: e.g. door keys. A pass, in general, is something you present to pass somewhere, whether it's spoken or written; a key is not something you present to pass somewhere. We have pass words, pass slips, hall/press/ski pass badges, etc. We don't have pass keys, because you don't show a key to pass somewhere. You use it. A password encoded as a QR code that you could show to a sensor would be a passkey. Whatever Google has is probably something else.
- MyNameIsFred 4y agoThe simplified terminology is not for you or I as technologists. It is for the general consumer market. Yes, public/private key cryptography has been a thing for decades, but it has been out of reach for the consumer market. The whole passkey idea is to reduce the technical and cognitive friction to make it a viable replacement for passwords.
- pimlottc 4y agoGiven how poorly private keys have done in the end user marketplace so far, they definitely need to be rebranded.
- __MatrixMan__ 4y agoEvery time I notice a rebranding I assume they're trying to hide something from me. Maybe that's just me.
- krageon 4y agoIt is a fair assumption even in this case, the rebranding serves to hide the fact that private keys are used from you.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- dwaite 4y agoIt isn't (just) a private key. It is part of a purpose-built authentication process that leverages private keys as a component. You cannot use the private key within a passkey for general purpose data signing, for example.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- masukomi 4y agobecause there's a time based hardware component to it. this isn't just public key encryption. Think of it as a physical Yubikey but embedded in your ...whatever.