Millions Can Now Sign in to UK Government Services With a Fingerprint

The UK's Government Digital Service has opened passkey sign-in to every GOV.UK One Login account, the login more than 23 million people use to reach government services online. Account holders can now sign in with a fingerprint, a face scan or a device PIN in place of a password and a texted verification code.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, which announced the rollout on Sept. 14, 2026, describes passkeys as a faster and more secure way into services such as childcare support or a driver's license renewal. Passkeys are optional, and anyone who prefers a password can keep using one. The biometric or PIN information that unlocks a passkey stays on the user's device and is not seen or stored by One Login, the department says.

More than 300,000 people switched to a passkey during an initial trial. The department's own figures put nearly one in 10 daily One Login sign-ins on a passkey already, and it says dropping the text messages saves nearly £600 a day in SMS costs. It puts a passkey sign-in at up to eight times faster than a username, password and two-step code. Those are the department's own operating numbers, and no independent measurement of them has been published.

A passkey is tied to one device and one website, so there is no password for an attacker to capture through a fake email or a fake site. The National Cyber Security Centre recommends passkeys over passwords, saying they cannot be intercepted, reused or stolen. Passkeys "offer a highly phishing-resistant alternative to passwords, frustrating attackers and saving the public time," said Jonathon Ellison, the NCSC's director for national resilience.

One Login is the shared account for a growing list of government services, among them checking a State Pension and managing tax.