In April this year, Google introduced a new way of two-factor authentication that uses an Android phone as a physical key. It developed a new Bluetooth-based protocol that allows modern Android devices to act as a security key for two-factor authentication.
Since then, the company says that more than 100,000 users are already using their Android phones as a security key. Now, the company has announced that it is expanding the service to allow iPhone and iPad owners to use their Android security key to verify sign-ins.
For the Android security key to work for the iOS device, users of iPhone and iPad need the Google Smart Lock app installed on their device. For now, Google said the Android security key will be limited to sign-ins to Google accounts only.
When debuted, the technology was limited to Chrome sign-ins. Now Google says Apple device owners can get the same protections without having to plug anything in. It works on Gmail, G Suite, Google Cloud, and any other Google account service, and uses the FIDO authentication standard.
FIDO2 is a secure and flexible standard that allows various devices running different operating systems to communicate with each other for authentication. Google says that since the new technology runs on the same protocols that a physical security key would, it’s only a matter of time before other companies start implementing this tech.
