What if my phone battery dies during QR passkey authentication?

Passkeys often rely on QR codes for cross-device authentication, where a phone with the passkey scans a QR code to authenticate on another device. But what happens if your phone battery dies mid-process?

If your phone battery dies while trying to authenticate via QR code, you can use the following methods:

• Synced Passkeys: If your passkeys are stored in Google Password Manager, iCloud Keychain, or another cloud service, you can access them directly from another logged-in device.
• Hardware Security Keys: If you have a FIDO2 hardware security key (e.g., YubiKey, Titan Key), you can use it instead of your phone to authenticate.
• Platform-Specific Authentication: If the device you are trying to log in to supports Windows Hello, Face ID, or Touch ID, you may be able to authenticate without the QR code.
• Backup Device: If you have another device (tablet, secondary phone) with access to your passkeys, you can scan the QR code from there.

To avoid authentication issues due to a dead phone battery:

• Ensure your passkeys are synced to a cloud service, allowing access from multiple devices.
• Carry a hardware security key as a backup authentication method.
• Charge your primary authentication device or keep a power bank handy to prevent disruptions.

While QR passkey authentication provides a seamless login experience, having fallback authentication methods ensures you're never locked out due to unexpected issues like a dead phone battery.