What you need to know
- Google has introduced two new Titan Security Keys during the Aspen Cyber Summit.
- These new Security Keys are offered with either USB-C or USB-A and still provide NFC and fingerprint authentication.
- What makes these different is that they can now be used to "store more than 250 unique passkeys."
Over the past couple of years, we've seen companies like Google, Apple, and Microsoft introduce new and different ways to keep our accounts secure. Since 2018, Google has offered different versions of its Titan Security Keys, and now there are new versions on the way.
From the outside, there's not much that's different from the previous Security Keys, as there is still a USB-C and USB-A option. Instead, Google is now making it possible to store and protect your various passkeys with these dongles. Announced during the Aspen Cyber Summit, Google states that these Security Keys can be used to store "more than 250 unique passkeys."
The company goes on to state that you'll be prompted to set up a "simple PIN code which can be used instead of a password," whenever you add a passkey to your Google account. As expected, both versions of the new Titan Security Key rely on FIDO2, providing the same level of security for your accounts.
In the accompanying blog post, Google also announced that it would be "committing 100,000 security keys to high risk users in 2024." This is the same number of security keys that the company distributed over the course of 2023, and will be provided to campaign workers, activists, and journalists."
At the time of this writing, Google has already replaced the old versions with these new variants on its virtual storefront. The USB-A version is priced at $30, while the USB-C model comes in at $35. Currently, you can't actually purchase either version, as the "Buy" button is greyed out. But, if you hit the link here, you can sign up for the waitlist to be notified when these become available for purchase.
