Microsoft is getting rid of passwords in less than two weeks. 

On Aug. 1, the Microsoft Authenticator app will no longer store or manage passwords, which could be a problem for a lot of users. Microsoft Authenticator has been one of the best password managers for years. You were able to save passwords, enable two-factor authentication and auto-fill. This change means that if you’re using the Authenticator app as a password manager, you’ll need to look for another option soon.  

At the same time, Microsoft will move to passkeys instead. 

Using a passkey as a login means you’ll use PINs, fingerprint scans, facial recognition or a pattern on a device’s lock screen. It’s a safer option compared to the risky password habits. A CNET survey found that 49% of US adults have bad password habits. Having an insecure password can put you at risk of having your information exposed. 

If you’ve been using Microsoft Authenticator, now’s the time to start making changes. Here’s what to know about the switch and the best password managers CNET recommends. 

When will Microsoft Authenticator stop supporting passwords?

Microsoft Authenticator houses your passwords and lets you sign into all your Microsoft accounts using a PIN, facial recognition like Windows Hello, or other biometric data like a fingerprint. Authenticator can be used in other ways, such as verifying you’re logging in if you forgot your password, or using two-factor authentication as an extra layer of security for your accounts. In June, the company stopped letting users add passwords to Authenticator.

Starting this month, you won’t be able to use the autofill password function. And next month, you’ll no longer be able to use saved passwords.

If you still want to use passwords instead of passkeys, you can store them in Microsoft Edge. However, CNET experts recommend adopting passkeys during this transition. «Passkeys use public key cryptography to authenticate users, rather than relying on users themselves creating their own (often weak or reused) passwords to access their online accounts,» Tomaschek said.

Why are passkeys a better alternative to passwords?

So what exactly is a passkey? It’s a credential created by the Fast Identity Online Alliance that uses biometric data or a PIN to verify your identity and access your account. Think about using your fingerprint or Face ID to log into your account. That’s generally safer than using a password that is easy to guess or susceptible to a phishing attack.

«Passwords can be cracked, whereas passkeys need both the public and the locally stored private key to authenticate users, which can help mitigate risks like falling victim to phishing and brute-force or credential-stuffing attacks,» said Attila Tomaschek, CNET’s software senior writer and digital security expert.

Passkeys aren’t stored on servers like passwords. Instead, they’re stored only on your personal device. More conveniently, this takes the guesswork out of remembering your passwords and the need for a password manager.

How to set up a passkey in Microsoft Authenticator

Microsoft said in a May 1 blog post that it will automatically detect the best passkey to set up and make that your default sign-in option. «If you have a password and ‘one-time code’ set up on your account, we’ll prompt you to sign in with your one-time code instead of your password. After you’re signed in, you’ll be prompted to enroll a passkey. Then the next time you sign in, you’ll be prompted to sign in with your passkey,» according to the blog post.

To set up a new passkey, open your Authenticator app on your phone. Tap on your account and select «Set up a passkey.» You’ll be prompted to log in with your existing credentials. After you’re logged in, you can set up the passkey.

Other password manager alternatives 

Since Microsoft will get rid of all of your passwords in two weeks, you’ll need a new place to store your passwords safely. Tomaschek has a few of the best password manager recommendations after testing and reviewing several. 

The top recommendation is Bitwarden for its transparency. It’s open-source and audited annually. From a price perspective, the free plan lets you store infinite passwords across unlimited devices. The free plan also includes features most password managers would charge for, including password sharing and a username and password generator. 

Bitwarden’s upgraded plans have other upgraded features that could be worth the cost, too. 

Personally, Tomaschek has been using 1Password for a while, and he likes the interface and family plan. Even though it’s second on the list, Tomaschek says it’s just as good as Bitwarden. 

The Pokemon Company unveiled a host of Pokemon content at its Pokemon Presents event on Tuesday. We saw a new trailer for Pokemon Legends: Z-A, a release date for the second season of the Netflix series Pokemon Concierge and a free, new mobile game you can play now, called Pokemon Friends. 

The latest Pokemon mobile game is a puzzle game where you untangle threads of yarn in order to weave Pokemon plushes for your in-game collection. You can play it now on iOS and Android devices for free, or you can buy it for $10 on the Nintendo eShop.

Here’s what you should know to get started with Pokemon Friends.

Puzzles, yarn and Pokemon

To earn yarn, you have to solve puzzles in the game. To get to these puzzles, tap the Psyduck tile with the word Untangle near the bottom of the screen in the main room of the game — poor Psyduck is always tied up in knots. Some of the puzzles include connecting a string of lightbulbs using only one line and rotating a box in order to free Pokemon, like Slowpoke, from the box. 

After solving the series of puzzles, you are rewarded with a certain number of inches of yarn. Your reward depends on how quickly you solve the puzzles, so if you want the most yarn to make more Pokemon plushes, you have to be faster than an Electrode.

Once you have your yarn, you’ll stamp your calendar, which shows all the days you’ve solved puzzles for. You can use your calendar to keep track of what days you’ve solved puzzles, and you can use it to go back to older puzzles and try to beat your high score.

When you have your yarn, tap the Plush-O-Matic — the machine that looks like a giant Pokeball — and you’ll be able to make plushes with your yarn. Then tap Make and you can choose which yarn to create a Pokemon plush with. Certain yarns are used to make a handful of Pokemon, but it only took one bundle of yarn to make my first few Pokemon. 

However, I can’t see a way to make one particular Pokemon. For example, when you select Fiery Yarn, you can tap Plush Rates in the bottom right corner of your screen to see what Pokemon that yarn can create. I found that my Fiery Yarn could create a Charmander, Charizard, Scorbunny or Fuecoco plush, but I had a 25% chance to make any of those Pokemon — I got a Scorbunny!

After tapping the Plush-O-Matic, you can also tap Catalog to see details of which plushes you’ve created, like their size, how many of them you own and what yarn it takes to create them. 

Decorate with your new Pokemon friend

After you’ve woven your Pokemon plush, it’s time to decorate. From the main room of the game, tap the tile in the bottom left corner of your screen that has a Scorbunny on it — it was like that before I got my own Scorbunny. This will take you to your own room, which you can decorate with your plushes. 

Once in the room, tap the tile with the Pawmi and Buneary in the left corner of your screen to pull up all the plushes. Tap the plush you want to decorate with and then you can drag and place it anywhere in the room. 

You can also tap the green chair under the Pawmi and Buneary tile to add or change furniture in the room. Beneath that tile is an hourglass icon. Tap and hold the hourglass to rewind your room, kind of like an Undo button. 

And in the bottom left corner of your screen is a toy chest with Sprigatito, Fuecoco and Quaxly Pokemon. This is the Tidy Up button. Tap this and then tap Pokemon plushes or furniture around the room to remove them from the room. And if you accidentally remove something, no worries, tap and hold the hourglass to undo the change. 

After decorating, tap the green door in the top right corner of your screen to go back to the main room. 

The mobile version is free but…

The mobile version of Pokemon Friends is free up to a point. I could only solve the second series of puzzles the first time I played the game, but that might be different for you. 

After you solve your daily puzzles, Pokemon Friends says you can buy DLC to keep playing. To do so, tap Shop in the top left corner of your screen and you can buy different bundles.

The Basic Pack ($10) lets you play puzzles as often as you like. Other packs include new puzzles, wallpapers for your plush room and more, and those packs start at $15. 

It’s unclear if you can solve a limited number of puzzles every day without issue, or if you’ll have to buy the Basic Pack at some point to continue playing. 

The Pokemon Company did not immediately respond to my request for comment.

For more on the July Pokemon Presents, here’s all the free stuff you can get from the event.

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If this gaming keyboard isn’t quite a fit for you, check out the best gaming keyboards list for other options.

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