Yes, Apple has long offered an easy way to save usernames and passwords as part of iCloud Keychain and even allowed them to be synced between devices for easy login. However, Apple may soon dedicate an entire app across all platforms to password management.
According Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple will introduce a new app called Passwords at WWDC 2024. The app will be part of and available on “iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS 15.” Like iCloud Keychain, the dedicated app can “generate passwords and keep track of them.”
Reportedly, on iOS or iPadOS, it will leave Settings and go into a dedicated app, while on Mac, it will leave Safari Settings and become a dedicated app. As you might suspect, iCloud Keychain will remain the backbone of this experience.
The app will be a one-stop shop for password management across all Apple devices and will be divided into categories. It will support standard logins and passwords, saved Wi-Fi networks, and passcodes that use Touch ID or Face ID. The launch of a dedicated password management app will put Apple in more direct competition with third-party services like LastPass, Aura, and 1Password.
Like these, Apple's Passwords solution will likely support importing passwords, possibly encouraging people to opt for the one built into the heart of the platforms.
The latest report also notes that passwords will work on the Vision Pro (we'll note that the $3,500 Spatial Computer already supports iCloud Keychain for autofill) and on Windows computers. It's unclear whether it will be a formal app or a web experience for the latter. Either way, the app will offer the ability to autofill usernames and passwords on these devices.
As someone who uses iCloud Keychain, I already appreciate that it works across platforms and a dedicated app could make it easier to manage. And if I'm looking for a password, it will be a little easier to open an app and authenticate than to dive into settings. It will be interesting to see if any new features are implemented, potentially the ability to automatically update logins or passwords after a set period of time. However, all of that is speculative.
Apple will likely unveil the Passwords app along with a ton of other news at its WWDC 2024 keynote. Much of the focus will likely be on the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning ads ( ML) for all Apple platforms: iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS and visionOS.
We'll know for sure on June 10, 2024, and you can check out the other rumored announcements ahead of the Worldwide Developers Conference here.
