Microsoft account no longer requires passwords: here's how to get rid of them

For many years, passwords have been the only obstacle in the way of intruders trying to find out someone else's data. In an effort to make it harder for unauthorized access, companies have steadily tightened requirements for character and number sets. However, the more difficult they got, the more difficult it was to remember them.

Microsoft has addressed this issue drastically by letting you opt out of passwords altogether and sign in with a confirmation in the Authenticator app.

Here's how to opt out of Microsoft passwords:

• Install Microsoft Authenticator from the app store on your smartphone and log in there using your account.

Microsoft Authenticator

Microsoft Corporation

Price: Free

Download

Price: Free

Microsoft Authenticator

Microsoft Corporation

Price: Free

Download

Price: Free

• Go to the site account.microsoft.com, open the Security section and select Advanced Security Settings.

• In the window that opens, find "Account without password" and click "Enable". Then follow the prompts to complete the setup.

After these steps, you can sign in to Microsoft services such as Outlook and OneDrive without a password - through confirmation in Authenticator. If necessary, you can return the password in the same section of the security settings on the site where it was disabled.