Thales Partners with Colombian Startup SoyYo for Passkey Tech Integration

  SoyYo

Thales, a global tech provider, has teamed up with Colombian startup SoyYo to incorporate passkey technology into the digital identity services that the latter offers to the financial sector.

SoyYo, established in 2019, provides an identity solution that enables users to store digital credentials on their smartphones. These credentials can be unlocked using a facial scan when interacting with organizations that support the credential. This concept mirrors the passkey approach, which includes a pair of cryptographic keys. One key is held by an organization, while the other is stored on the user’s device and secured with biometrics or a PIN.

Thales, which has been assisting SoyYo with technological support for several years, has now guided the startup in integrating passkeys via its Gemalto IdCloud solution. The outcome of this collaboration includes two types of passkeys. The first type, device-bound passkeys, follows the traditional method of storing cryptographic credentials on a user’s device. The second type of passkeys can be synchronized across multiple devices and used for “low assurance authentication,” such as logging into a mobile app.

The partnership announcement arrives as interest in passkeys surges. Google, for instance, has announced that it will make passkeys the default login option for users with personal Google Accounts, following positive user feedback. Additionally, major password management platform 1Password and popular messaging app WhatsApp have also recently introduced support for passkeys.

Danny de Vreeze, Thales’ Vice President for Identity & Access Management, commented on the development. He said, “Passwords have been the fatal flaw in digital authentication for decades, but with the introduction of passkeys we are finally on the brink of a passwordless future. We are proud to offer passkeys to all our customers, including those in regulated industries. We are pleased to support SoyYo, an agile fintech, playing a crucial role as an identity provider, with a smooth migration to a modern, future-proof solution.”