Latest news with #Messenger
Mint
5 hours ago
- Mint
Meta rolls out ‘Passkey' login for Facebook users on mobile devices: How the safety feature works
Meta has announced the introduction of passkeys as a new method of login for Facebook users on mobile devices. The feature is being rolled out for both iOS and Android platforms, with plans to extend support to Messenger in the near future. Passkeys are digital credentials that replace traditional passwords, allowing users to authenticate their identity using biometric methods such as fingerprint or facial recognition, or a device PIN. Developed by the FIDO Alliance, an industry group focused on improving digital security, passkeys are designed to provide a more secure and convenient way to access online accounts. According to Meta, passkeys offer a higher level of protection against common cyber threats such as phishing and credential theft. Unlike passwords, passkeys cannot be guessed or stolen via malicious websites, and they are resistant to techniques like password spraying. Users can set up a passkey through the Accounts Center located in Facebook's settings. In some cases, they may be prompted to create one during the login process. Once set up, the passkey will enable quicker and more secure access to Facebook on mobile devices that support the feature. The same passkey will also function for Messenger when support is introduced. Meta plans to extend the use of passkeys to other services, including autofilling payment details via Meta Pay and securing encrypted message backups. While the passkey becomes the default method on supported devices, users will retain the ability to log in using their password on devices that do not yet support passkey functionality. Meta has confirmed that the biometric data used to generate the passkey remains on the user's device and is neither visible to nor stored by the company. In other news, Oakley has teamed up with Meta to launch a new line of AI-powered smart glasses aimed at athletes and sports fans. The Oakley Meta HSTN (pronounced 'HOW-stuhn') blends Oakley's signature design with Meta's wearable tech, offering hands-free camera use, open-ear audio, and integrated AI assistance.
Hindustan Times
9 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Meta announces passkeys on Facebook to secure mobile logins
Meta has announced the rollout of passkeys on Facebook for iOS and Android devices, offering users a new way to sign in using the fingerprint, facial recognition or PIN already set up on their smartphones. 'Passkeys will soon be available on iOS and Android mobile devices for Facebook, and we will begin rolling out passkeys to Messenger in the coming months,' revealed Meta in an official announcement. Passkeys offer a passwordless login method that uses your phone's built-in authentication tools such as fingerprint, facial recognition or a device PIN to verify identity. The credentials are stored locally on the device rather than on servers, making them more secure and resistant to phishing and other cyberattacks. How does a passkey keep your account secure? Passkeys are much harder to steal or hack than passwords. Since your fingerprint, face scan or PIN never leaves your device, no one, not even Meta, can access it. This means even if a hacker tricks you with a fake login page, there's nothing for them to steal. Unlike SMS codes, which can be intercepted, passkeys can't be reused or phished. Each passkey is unique to your device and account, so even if someone tries to copy it, it won't work anywhere else. Simply put, it's a safer, more private way to log in. What else can you do with your passkey? You'll soon be able to use your passkey to autofill payment info with Meta Pay, log in to Messenger and secure your message backups. How to set up your passkey While the arrival of passkeys on Facebook is a welcome improvement, it also highlights Meta's comparatively slow adoption of this now industry-standard feature. Tech giants like Google, Microsoft, Amazon and PayPal have already been using passkeys to keep their consumers secure. Google has been offering passkeys since 2022, while X (formerly Twitter), eBay and other platforms have already enabled them for a long time. Meta began supporting passkeys on WhatsApp last year, and Facebook and Messenger are now catching up. However, Instagram still does not support passkeys, and no rollout timeline has been announced. The delay also raises broader questions about Meta's approach to user security, especially given the company's sprawling user base across its platforms.
Phone Arena
9 hours ago
- Phone Arena
Finally! Your Facebook account is about to get way harder to crack
Meta is rolling out passkey support for Facebook and Messenger on mobile devices, making logins smoother and more secure. Instead of typing a password, you'll use the same verification methods you already have on your phone – like a PIN, fingerprint or face will soon be available on both iOS and Android for Facebook, with Messenger getting the feature in the coming months. Once set up, the same passkey works for both apps. It's safer, faster and harder to hack than your usual password Video credit – Meta Receive the latest iOS news By subscribing you agree to our terms and conditions and privacy policy Would you ditch passwords for Facebook passkeys? Heck yes, bring on the security! Maybe, if it's simple to use. Nah, passwords work fine for me. Don't care about account security. Heck yes, bring on the security! 0% Maybe, if it's simple to use. 0% Nah, passwords work fine for me. 0% Don't care about account security. 0% About time and very welcome Apple Google Setting up a passkey is simple. You can create and manage yours in the Accounts Center inside Facebook's Settings menu. Of course that is once the feature is rolled out to are a way better alternative to regular passwords because they can't be stolen, guessed or leaked. They also protect you from phishing scams – those sneaky tricks where bad actors try to get you to enter your info on fake sites. Since your browser links your passkey to a specific website, it won't work on phony login passkey itself, along with your fingerprint, face scan or PIN used to create it, stays safely on your device. Meta never sees, stores or shares this Facebook has been pretty slow to roll out passkeys compared to others. Google and Apple have had this feature for years, and X jumped in last year . Microsoft, Amazon, eBay, PayPal and lots of others already support passkeys, Meta's other app, WhatsApp, has started letting users log in with passkeys . Instagram, however, is still holding out. So, Facebook finally adding passkeys is a big step forward for better security on the online threats lurking everywhere, having stronger protection is more important than ever. I mean, just recently, a huge data breach leaked 16 billion login credentials , including ones tied toand– and Meta isn't immune are plenty of stories about stolen accounts and I'm sure you know someone who has been through it. And passkeys offer a solid way to help stop that from happening. Better late than never, right?
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Mark Zuckerberg Is ‘Doubling Down' on AI and That's Great News for META Stock
One of the most notable investment themes in recent memory is, of course, an increasing focus on artificial intelligence (AI). Social media giant Meta Platforms (META) is not above this trend among companies. In fact, Meta Platforms is doubling down. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has gone all-in on AI, and Wall Street is clearly taking notice. META stock has jumped a notable 45% from its April low of $479.80 per share as investors rally behind the firm's growing commitment to AI innovation. The latest jolt of momentum comes from Meta's massive $14.3 billion investment in Scale AI, a leading data-labeling startup whose CEO is now joining Meta's artificial general intelligence (AGI) team. This move comes right after Meta raised its 2025 capital expenditure forecast to as much as $72 billion. That figure underlines just how serious Zuckerberg is about leading the AI race. 'It Has No Utility': Warren Buffett Doesn't Care How High Gold Goes, He Isn't a Buyer OpenAI CEO Sam Altman Says 'We Are Heading Towards a World Where AI Will Just Have Unbelievable Context on Your Life' Archer Aviation Is Betting Big on Its Fledgling Defense Business. Does That Make ACHR Stock a Buy Here? Tired of missing midday reversals? The FREE Barchart Brief newsletter keeps you in the know. Sign up now! Despite such heavy spending, the market response has remained positive. With several analysts across the Street hiking their price targets for META stock and optimism running high, this AI-fueled rally is hard to ignore. All signs point to Meta remaining a major player in the next tech era — and that makes shares worth a much closer look. Meta Platforms has evolved far beyond its Facebook roots. As the powerhouse behind Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger, it still shapes how the world connects. But now the firm is setting its sights on the future of AI. Aside from its latest $14.3 billion bet on Scale AI, Meta has been steadily integrating AI into its core platforms since last year. In April 2025, the company launched Meta AI, a chatbot assistant that has already reached 1 billion monthly active users across its apps. Meta is also gaining traction in hardware, with AI-powered Ray-Ban smart glasses seeing user growth surge. Finally, the company is working on harnessing AI to supercharge ad targeting and boost user engagement across its entire app family, including Instagram and WhatsApp. META stock drew fresh attention on June 16, climbing 2.8% after the company announced plans to roll out ads within its WhatsApp messaging platform, unlocking a powerful new revenue stream from the app's massive global user base. Valued at around $1.75 trillion by market capitalization, Meta's aggressive AI strategy and new revenue channels are turning into a clear market win. The stock has climbed 18.8% so far in 2025, outshining most of its 'Magnificent Seven' peers. It's also outperforming the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) by a wide margin, with the benchmark up just 1.7% year-to-date. Meta kicked off fiscal 2025 with a blowout first-quarter earnings report on April 30, easily beating Wall Street's expectations on both the top and bottom lines. META stock jumped 4.2% in the following session as revenue surged 16% year-over-year (YOY) to $42.3 billion, topping forecasts of $41.2 billion. Even more impressive, earnings per share soared 37% to $6.43, crushing estimates by a notable 23.2% margin. Meta's ad business is showing serious strength, with key metrics moving solidly in the right direction. Ad impressions rose 5% YOY while the average price per ad jumped 10% YOY, signaling strong demand. And it's not just the ad side that's thriving. User engagement remains sky-high. In March 2025, Meta's family of apps reached 3.4 billion daily active users, up 6% from the prior year. CEO Mark Zuckerberg highlighted Meta's accelerating AI momentum, citing the success of Meta AI and the growing adoption of the firm's AI-powered smart glasses. Meta is heading into the second quarter with strong momentum, forecasting revenue to range between $42.5 billion and $45.5 billion. The company is also raising the bar on spending, boosting its 2025 capital expenditure outlook to a range of $64 billion to $72 billion, up from the previous range of $60 billion to $65 billion. This increase highlights Meta's sharpened focus on scaling its AI capabilities, with significant investments being poured into data centers to support its rapidly growing infrastructure. Wall Street is growing increasingly bullish on Meta, with major firms raising their price targets amid the company's aggressive AI push and new monetization strategies. Earlier this month, JPMorgan lifted its target on the stock to $735 from $675, reaffirming an 'Overweight' rating and highlighting Meta's dominant social media footprint and long-term growth strategy, particularly in AI and the Metaverse. Wells Fargo is also staying bullish on META stock, reiterating its 'Overweight' rating with a $664 target. The firm pointed to a potential $6 billion boost in WhatsApp ad revenue, a move that signals Meta's next big income stream is already in motion. Adding to the momentum, Oppenheimer bumped its price target to $775 from $665, citing a stronger-than-expected ad market and macro backdrop. While acknowledging some mixed feedback around Llama 4, the firm emphasized investor confidence in Meta's $14.3 billion Scale AI deal and its broader ability to 'unlock new business with AI.' Overall, Wall Street is giving Meta the green light with a 'Strong Buy' consensus that signals broad confidence in the company's growth trajectory and AI-driven future. Of the 53 analysts offering recommendations, 44 give META stock a 'Strong Buy' rating, three suggest a 'Moderate Buy,' four give it a 'Hold," and only two advocate for a 'Strong Sell" rating. META stock's average analyst price target of $704.57 indicates marginal upside potential from current price levels. However, the Street-high price target of $935 suggests that shares can still rally as much as 34% from here. On the date of publication, Anushka Mukherji did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Facebook starts rolling out passkeys for users: Here's how to setup one
Facebook has started rolling out support for passkeys on its mobile applications for Android and iOS, marking a significant step towards a password-free future and enhanced account security. 'We're introducing passkeys on Facebook for mobile devices, offering another tool to safeguard your privacy and security. Passkeys are a new way to verify your identity and log in to your account that's easier and more secure than traditional passwords,' said the company in a blog post. Passkeys are available for both Android and iOS users and the company will also begin the passkeys roll out for Messenger in coming months. What is a Passkey For those unaware, passkeys are secure digital credentials that act as alternatives for passwords. They allow you to log in to websites and apps securely by verifying it's you using the fingerprint, face or PIN you use to unlock your device. Once created, passkeys makes it easier and faster for users to log-in to Facebook without the need of memorising the password. How to setup passkey in Facebook To set up a passkey, users can navigate to the "Accounts Center" within the Facebook app's settings under "Password and Security." They may also receive a prompt to create a passkey during their next login. It's important to note that while passkeys offer superior security and convenience, traditional password-based login methods will remain available for users accessing Facebook from devices that do not yet support passkeys. Beyond login convenience, passkeys will also enable secure autofill for Meta Pay transactions and encrypted message backups in Messenger. Importantly, Meta emphasised that biometric data used to create passkeys remains stored on the user's device and is never shared or accessed by the company.
