iOS 18 to debut Apple Passwords app

AppleInsider

Thanks to a new dedicated app, passwords will no longer be buried in Settings with iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS 15.

Apple Passwords app coming to iOS 18

Too many people go through life with one or two passwords they use for everything. This problem has been exacerbated by Apple's tendency to hide necessary functionality, such as a password manager deep in the Settings app.

That all changes with iOS 18 and the other new operating systems, according to a report from Bloomberg. Apple will introduce a new dedicated Passwords app for iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS 15, and visionOS 2.

AppleInsider verified the existence of such an app with people familiar with the upcoming releases. The app will replicate the functions of the Passwords menu that already exists in Settings.

It will also gain a few other abilities, like surfacing Wi-Fi network passwords. The app also manages passkeys, 2FA tokens, and potential breach notifications.

Bringing the app front and center will increase awareness of the built-in functionality across Apple's ecosystem. Instead of turning to less secure options that end up breached, users can rely on the existing frameworks on their devices.

Apple introduced password sharing in iOS 17, which allows users to generate groups of passwords that can be shared with anyone. This, plus the standalone app, could cut into businesses like 1Password. However, Apple's more basic offering won't cover every user's need.

The new app will allegedly eventually get a dedicated Passwords app for Windows. That will help users choose Apple over alternatives if they are cross-platform users.

WWDC will be held on June 10, and all the new operating system updates will be revealed. It is expected to be a software-focused event that will be filled with Apple AI.

Rumor Score: Likely

Read on AppleInsider

robin huber

Hope there’s an auto importer for 1Password. 

Ofer

FINALLY! 😄

mistergsf

I want this.  I've been a long-time 1Password user; since the beginning.  I'm at a point where I'm wondering do I really need to keep paying a subscription for 1Password 8?  Don't get me wrong.  The software has come a long way and it's been great for me.  I'm now at a point where I don't need a boatload of features.  I just want it to be secure and the ability to share with my significant other.  I welcome this.

jdw

No doubt it will be unusual by me, just as Apple Keychain is.  I refuse to enable stupid 2FA, so I can't use Keychain.  However, I can use 1Password (an older version that has no absurd subscription attached to it).  Since 1Password still works for me, it largely doesn't matter what Apple does, but I would prefer to obliteration of 2FA at some point in the future.  I refuse to be possibly locked out of a particular device only because I don't have the means (device or others) for that 2FA to work.  Passwords are enough for me, regardless of what the 2FA worshippers and security experts have to say.  I want control to do as I please.  2FA takes some of my freedom away, and I don't like that.

zeus423

jdw said:

No doubt it will be unusual by me, just as Apple Keychain is.  I refuse to enable stupid 2FA, so I can't use Keychain.  However, I can use 1Password (an older version that has no absurd subscription attached to it).  Since 1Password still works for me, it largely doesn't matter what Apple does, but I would prefer to obliteration of 2FA at some point in the future.  I refuse to be possibly locked out of a particular device only because I don't have the means (device or others) for that 2FA to work.  Passwords are enough for me, regardless of what the 2FA worshippers and security experts have to say.  I want control to do as I please.  2FA takes some of my freedom away, and I don't like that.

Right there with you. 1Password, no subscription for me either! I'm not paying for the same software for the rest of my life.

williamlondon

Tried 1Password and found it cumbersome to setup, stayed with Keychain but would like to see it simplified and these changes seem perfect toward that.

Xed

I'm pretty sure Apple pulling their password manager out of Settings and into a separate app won't come close to giving me the features I use with 1P, but I'll remain hopeful.

For example, having a username, password, website, and password authenticator built-in is a good start, but you need to be able to organize a lot more data for logins, like account numbers, email addresses, names, costs, various dates, and many other settings that I simply don't want to cram in a simple section called Notes.

AppleZulu

zeus423 said:

jdw said:

No doubt it will be unusual by me, just as Apple Keychain is.  I refuse to enable stupid 2FA, so I can't use Keychain.  However, I can use 1Password (an older version that has no absurd subscription attached to it).  Since 1Password still works for me, it largely doesn't matter what Apple does, but I would prefer to obliteration of 2FA at some point in the future.  I refuse to be possibly locked out of a particular device only because I don't have the means (device or others) for that 2FA to work.  Passwords are enough for me, regardless of what the 2FA worshippers and security experts have to say.  I want control to do as I please.  2FA takes some of my freedom away, and I don't like that.

Right there with you. 1Password, no subscription for me either! I'm not paying for the same software for the rest of my life.

So you store all your passwords in an app that doesn’t get security updates? What could possibly go wrong?

mattinoz

I assume this will replace keychain access on all the Mac as well as what is in settings. 

I wonder if it will have its own API to allow services to flag and organise security upgrades directly in the app with user direction. 

welshdog

I don't want passwords and other data in the cloud - even with Apple's better security implementations. I'm using Enpass now in strictly local mode with WiFi sync to devices only when I turn it on. I also don't put critical passwords on the phones or other mobile devices. They remain in a separate "vault" that is only on my laptop, which never leaves the house. Everyone does online banking now and most of us have logins for things like credit cards, social security, medical etc. and just doesn't make sense to me that those logins should ever be on someone elses servers.

mattinoz

welshdog said:

I don't want passwords and other data in the cloud - even with Apple's better security implementations. I'm using Enpass now in strictly local mode with WiFi sync to devices only when I turn it on. I also don't put critical passwords on the phones or other mobile devices. They remain in a separate "vault" that is only on my laptop, which never leaves the house. Everyone does online banking now and most of us have logins for things like credit cards, social security, medical etc. and just doesn't make sense to me that those logins should ever be on someone elses servers.

Agree to me banking is the password I’ve committed to remember, password service can deal with mostly everything else. 

coolfactor

I wish they called it Keychain to replace the Keychain Access app, but the dumbification of iOS and macOS continues...

Soon, Safari will be renamed to "Web Browser".

coolfactor

I just discovered that the Passwords built into Settings supports Verification Codes. Not sure how I missed that. I've been slowly migrating all of my codes from the Google Authenticator app over to Passwords. The fact that these codes work seamlessly across macOS and iOS gives me exactly what I need. No more reaching for my phone every time I need to log into a site.

xyzzy-xxx

I am sticking with my offline (no cloud) password manager (Safe +) that syncs with WiFi

apple4thewin

Yes about time I have some passwords saved on my phone that aren’t saved to my Windows pc (and viceversa) and this would truly make it less cumbersome.

kdupuis77

coolfactor said:

I just discovered that the Passwords built into Settings supports Verification Codes. Not sure how I missed that. I've been slowly migrating all of my codes from the Google Authenticator app over to Passwords. The fact that these codes work seamlessly across macOS and iOS gives me exactly what I need. No more reaching for my phone every time I need to log into a site.

It’s a great feature to be able to generate one time passcodes on device like that! A lifesaver for me when I am out to sea on my ship and trying to login to my iCloud account, on a government computer, without the ability to receive a text or push notification to my devices. I leave my MacBook Pro’s local time in automatic and generate my codes there because the algorithm used to generate those codes is seeded with time and date information. If you change either manually it will cease to work lol. (I change my iPhone’s manually as we change time zones because it also functions as my alarm clock haha). Good stuff!

AppleZulu

kdupuis77 said:

coolfactor said:

I just discovered that the Passwords built into Settings supports Verification Codes. Not sure how I missed that. I've been slowly migrating all of my codes from the Google Authenticator app over to Passwords. The fact that these codes work seamlessly across macOS and iOS gives me exactly what I need. No more reaching for my phone every time I need to log into a site.

It’s a great feature to be able to generate one time passcodes on device like that! A lifesaver for me when I am out to sea on my ship and trying to login to my iCloud account, on a government computer, without the ability to receive a text or push notification to my devices. I leave my MacBook Pro’s local time in automatic and generate my codes there because the algorithm used to generate those codes is seeded with time and date information. If you change either manually it will cease to work lol. (I change my iPhone’s manually as we change time zones because it also functions as my alarm clock haha). Good stuff!

You should reach out to Apple. Your use case might be interesting enough for them to think of solutions like allowing GPS to do time authentication. 

zeus423

AppleZulu said:

zeus423 said:

jdw said:

No doubt it will be unusual by me, just as Apple Keychain is.  I refuse to enable stupid 2FA, so I can't use Keychain.  However, I can use 1Password (an older version that has no absurd subscription attached to it).  Since 1Password still works for me, it largely doesn't matter what Apple does, but I would prefer to obliteration of 2FA at some point in the future.  I refuse to be possibly locked out of a particular device only because I don't have the means (device or others) for that 2FA to work.  Passwords are enough for me, regardless of what the 2FA worshippers and security experts have to say.  I want control to do as I please.  2FA takes some of my freedom away, and I don't like that.

Right there with you. 1Password, no subscription for me either! I'm not paying for the same software for the rest of my life.

So you store all your passwords in an app that doesn’t get security updates? What could possibly go wrong?

It doesn’t need updated. It’s not cloud or internet based. 

commentzilla

SHERLOCKED! For those of us who remember but it was inevitable. Could you imagine having to pay for StuffIT in 2024? A password manager is a logical progression for Apple. 

commentzilla

Xed said:

I'm pretty sure Apple pulling their password manager out of Settings and into a separate app won't come close to giving me the features I use with 1P, but I'll remain hopeful.

For example, having a username, password, website, and password authenticator built-in is a good start, but you need to be able to organize a lot more data for logins, like account numbers, email addresses, names, costs, various dates, and many other settings that I simply don't want to cram in a simple section called Notes.

Apple already has a password manager in Safari which goes beyond Keychain that does many of the things you mentioned. The Password App of course will go further.