Solved Another reason I detest Microsoft accounts lately

gmcgee78 · Dec 9, 2025

Microsoft account is not the only one. I tried to signin to my google account today that I just signed into yesterday and it never heard of me. Security has become a big problem on every account I try to use. The accounts want your great grandfathers social security number to verify it is you. You might as well make a new account every time you sign in.

TraderGary · Dec 9, 2025

Hazel123 said:
I have a pin for signing into the computer - but the number of serious nags to sign into outlook email or a microsoft account - it keeps wanting me to set up a "pass key" - and use my phone for it. I don't want to use my phone to sign in thank you! And various other websites it nags me to use a MS pass key instead of my Amazon password eg. I like to keep my logins separate - don;t want to use Microsoft to log into other sites. Also my password manager automatically puts my password in so it's quick and simple - or used to be! Now you need three or four clicks to even have the option for the password to be auto placed.

I do not keep passkeys on my phone or locally on my computer. Passkeys are kept only in my Password Manager. This totally eliminates the problems you're talking about with your phone and that way the passkey for each site is available to all my devices since they all use the same Password Manager. It's fast and simple!

As for sites that don't use passkeys yet, all passwords are kept in my Password Manager. I click on a site name, and my Password Manager instantly enters the logon and password for me, fast and simple. I never get "nagged" for anything.

And I certainly don't use a PIN to sign in to my computer. I use Windows Hello! All I have to do is look at my screen and I'm instantly in. I can't imagine doing it any other way.

cheaterslick · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
Not when you opt to go passwordless. No password required.

Just curious but how did you set that up?

Thanks

cheaterslick · Dec 9, 2025

Ghot said:
I detest an MS account, just because.

Thinking back to Win XP, I never got hacked and I didn't have...
Secure Boot, TPM 2.0, an MS Account, core isolation, none of that stuff.
All I had was a password.

Same goes for Windows 7.

Gee, and here I thought life was supposed to get easier, not harder.

TraderGary · Dec 9, 2025

cheaterslick said:
Just curious but how did you set that up?

Thanks

Setting your Microsoft Account to be passwordless is quite simple.
1. In your Microsoft Account choose Security.
2. Then click on the Manage how I sign in button.

Edwin · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
Setting your Microsoft Account to be passwordless is quite simple.
1. In your Microsoft Account choose Security.
2. Then click on the Manage how I sign in button.

And then what...???

Josey Wales · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
I do not keep passkeys on my phone or locally on my computer. Passkeys are kept only in my Password Manager. This totally eliminates the problems you're talking about with your phone and that way the passkey for each site is available to all my devices since they all use the same Password Manager. It's fast and simple!

As for sites that don't use passkeys yet, all passwords are kept in my Password Manager. I click on a site name, and my Password Manager instantly enters the logon and password for me, fast and simple. I never get "nagged" for anything.

And I certainly don't use a PIN to sign in to my computer. I use Windows Hello! All I have to do is look at my screen and I'm instantly in. I can't imagine doing it any other way.

I do not have a camera on my PC.

Edwin · Dec 9, 2025

Edwin said:
And then what...???

Nevermind!!!
It's a convoluted bunch of bullsh*t!
I set up Passwordless and had to perform 7 additional actions, 3 on the PC and 4 on the phone just to sign in, every time!
Took me 7 times longer than normal!

And, still got bombarded with 7 Don't lose access to your account nags!

hsehestedt · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
I do not keep passkeys on my phone or locally on my computer. Passkeys are kept only in my Password Manager. This totally eliminates the problems you're talking about with your phone and that way the passkey for each site is available to all my devices since they all use the same Password Manager. It's fast and simple!

As for sites that don't use passkeys yet, all passwords are kept in my Password Manager. I click on a site name, and my Password Manager instantly enters the logon and password for me, fast and simple. I never get "nagged" for anything.

And I certainly don't use a PIN to sign in to my computer. I use Windows Hello! All I have to do is look at my screen and I'm instantly in. I can't imagine doing it any other way.

Gary, I also keep my passkeys in my password manager (Proton Pass). But in the meantime, I've now done some more research and I think that I get it. While the option to go completely passwordless on the Microsoft Account management page does indeed force you to use the Microsoft Authenticator (and no other PW manager), you can still setup passkeys without that. However, while setting up passkeys does in fact let you logon without a password, it does NOT completely eliminate your password. If I were to look at my account page I would see that there is still a password option to sign on.

TraderGary · Dec 9, 2025

Edwin said:
Nevermind!!!
It's a convoluted bunch of bullsh*t!
I set up Passwordless and had to perform 7 additional actions, 3 on the PC and 4 on the phone just to sign in, every time!
Took me 7 times longer than normal!

Sorry. I set it up several years ago and to my memory it was monkey see - monkey do. I don't recall anything complicated that I couldn't easily handle. I wonder if @Brink has an easy step-by-step tutorial.

hsehestedt · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
And I certainly don't use a PIN to sign in to my computer. I use Windows Hello!

A PIN is considered Windows Hello! Facial recognition, PIN, fingerprint, etc. are all considered to be Windows Hello authentication methods.

Edwin · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
Sorry. I set it up several years ago and to my memory it was monkey see - monkey do. I don't recall anything complicated that I couldn't easily handle. I wonder if @Brink has an easy step-by-step tutorial.

It's not the setting up that's complicated..., it's using the method that is 7 times more time consuming!!!

Brink · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
Sorry. I set it up several years ago and to my memory it was monkey see - monkey do. I don't recall anything complicated that I couldn't easily handle. I wonder if @Brink has an easy step-by-step tutorial.

I don't like going passwordless for a Microsoft account since it removes an account recovery option.

Enable or Disable Passwordless Sign-in for Microsoft Accounts in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to turn on or off only allow Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts for passwordless sign-in on your Windows 11 device. You can keep your device even more secure by removing passwords when signing in to Windows 11 with Microsoft accounts on your device. All...

www.elevenforum.com

TraderGary · Dec 9, 2025

hsehestedt said:
A PIN is considered Windows Hello! Facial recognition, PIN, fingerprint, etc. are all considered to be Windows Hello authentication methods.

Understood! But it's easier and quicker to just look at a screen than type in a PIN. Of course, I set up a required PIN when configuring a clean install. And that PIN will be a passphrase that will be considered secure, but I will never use that PIN regularly.

TraderGary · Dec 9, 2025

Brink said:
I don't like going passwordless for a Microsoft account since it removes an account recovery option.

Yes, it does do that. But I also make sure I still have several other account recovery options.

FrancoDT · Dec 9, 2025

I'm like others and don't like NOT having that password as a fail safe. Plus I don't like the device dependency of having to have my phone. What if you misplace your phone? Now I'm all for using face recognition on my two PC's that support it although now in dark light conditions that doesn't always work and the pin has to be used. Also my older machine still will only load Safe Mode with a password. Pin still fails to load in Safe Mode on that machine as I just tried it.

Marcus Vinicus · Dec 9, 2025

I'm fine with my passwordless MS Account and have multiple ways of logging in if one doesn't work.
1. Windows Hello facial recognition.
2. Two different email addresses.
3. Microsoft Authenticator in my Android phone.
4. PIN.

I don't need a password.

TraderGary · Dec 9, 2025

FrancoDT said:
I'm like others and don't like NOT having that password as a fail safe. Plus I don't like the device dependency of having to have my phone. What if you misplace your phone? Now I'm all for using face recognition on my two PC's that support it although now in dark light conditions that doesn't always work and the pin has to be used. Also my older machine still will only load Safe Mode with a password. Pin still fails to load in Safe Mode on that machine as I just tried it.

Even though I've deleted my Microsoft Account password, I still have Windows Hello, two email accounts and a passkey. I'm not dependent on only my phone.

FrancoDT · Dec 9, 2025

TraderGary said:
Even though I've deleted my Microsoft Account password, I still have Windows Hello, two email accounts and a passkey. I'm not dependent on only my phone.

Redundancy for PC and phone access is a good thing which is also why I reinstated my password after trying passwordless. If you've every been caught in a Safe Mode boot loop that only accepts a password and you've disabled it and had to jump through hoops accessing the Command Prompt in the Recovery Environment to get out of it which I have you come to appreciate that password backup lol. I still keep a password on my phone as well even though it has Face, four of my fingerprints, and a pin.

TraderGary · Dec 9, 2025

FrancoDT said:
Redundancy for PC and phone access is a good thing which is also why I reinstated my password after trying passwordless. If you've every been caught in a Safe Mode boot loop that only accepts a password and you've disabled it and had to jump through hoops accessing the Command Prompt in the Recovery Environment to get out of it which I have you come to appreciate that password backup lol. I still keep a password on my phone as well even though it has Face, four of my fingerprints, and a pin.

Neither of my two computers have been caught in a Safe Mode boot loop, so I'm good there. The weakest link in security is the password. I prefer to eliminate the password by going passwordless and by using passkeys whenever possible.

Solved Another reason I detest Microsoft accounts lately

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