What you need to know
- Microsoft recently announced the Surface Pro 10 for business, which features a built-in NFC reader.
- Yubico and Microsoft worked together to allow YubiKeys to fully take advantage of the NFC reader in the Surface Pro 10 for business.
- Surface Pro 10 users can use a YubiKey at Windows login to authenticate their identity via NFC.
Microsoft announced its Surface Pro 10 for business and Surface Laptop 6 for business yesterday. The Surface Pro 10 for business has a built-in NFC, which opens the door for several business features. Perhaps most importantly is that the PC having a built-in NFC reader allows Yubico and Microsoft to work together to provide full YubiKey support.
Shortly after the announcement of the Surface Pro 10 for business, Yubico explained how a YubiKey can be used to log into a device and authenticate a user, all without requiring a password.
The NFC reader in the Surface Pro 10 for business is in the upper-left corner of the PC's screen. Tapping a YubiKey allows a user to log into a PC and cloud services. The setup supports using a cloud-based Microsoft account and supports Entra ID or Microsoft 365. YubiKey also works with Windows 11, Active Directory Certificate Services (ADCS), and other enterprise applications.
"Our enterprise customers rely on Surface for industry leading security and seamless user experiences. The ability to quickly and securely sign-in to the device and authenticate with NFC security keys is a critical experience that we’ve added to Surface Pro 10. YubiKeys take full advantage of the integrated NFC reader and delivers a huge win on both fronts," said Microsoft General Manager Nancie Gaskill.
"We are excited to work with Yubico to enable the use of YubiKeys, providing users with secure and innovative authentication options to protect against the increasing threat and volume of identity-based cyber attacks."
A Surface Pro built for business
When Microsoft presented the Surface Pro 10 for business, the company said the PC was built from the ground up with business in mind. I'm not sure that's entirely true, given that the Surface Pro 10 has a nearly identical external design to the Surface Pro 9, which was aimed at both general consumers and business users. But Microsoft did add features to the Surface Pro 10 that are business oriented.
The built-in NFC reader in the Surface Pro 10 for business can be used in a variety of ways, but security is the first that comes to mind. Full YubiKey support gives users a way to log into a device that's resistant to phishing. Using a YubiKey also allows users to move away from a password, which can help improve security.
The Surface Pro 10 for business runs on an Intel Core Ultra 5 or Intel Core Ultra 7 CPU. Enterprise users will likely prefer an Intel-powered PC over an ARM-powered one, even if Windows on Arm is finally about to get a lot better.
