How can I prevent windows security from taking over browser passkey?

Question

How can I prevent windows security from taking over browser passkey?

TNMQ 0

I'd like to use passkeys saved on my phones to sign in various services. The problem is every time I click the option "sign in with a passkey", windows security would pop up and ask for a hardware device. Previously, I was able to get these sites to generate a QR code, which I can then scan with my phones. Anyone knows how to disable this pop up or a way to let the browser generate QR codes for passkeys?

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2 answers

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Answer 1

Anonymous

Dear TNMQ,

I haven't received the message from you yet.

Please let me know if these steps I provided could help.

If there is anything more that I can do for you or if anything is unclear, please do not hesitate to let me know.

Sincerely,

TNMQ 0 Reputation points

2025-12-15T02:28:37.41+00:00
Hi Bryan-V,

Sorry for my late reply. I tried all these steps, but nothing has worked for me so far.

When I cancel the popup, the option becomes "retry with passkey", when I click that, the same popup appears again. I also tried keeping the popup on 1 browser and open another browser to the same page. In this case, when I clicked on "sign-in with a passkey", I received "authentication failed" notification.

Unfortunately, I don't see any security keys or the "remove" options.

Same behaviour has happened even after I created DisablePasswordless.

Appreciate your time and help!
Anonymous

2025-12-15T22:20:12.4366667+00:00
Dear TNMQ,

I'm sorry to hear the previous steps didn't resolve the issue. Now we could try to disable native Windows Hello in browser:

For Google Chrome:

Open a new tab and type: chrome://flags

In the search bar, type: web authentication

Look for a flag named "Windows WebAuthentication API" (or similar, sometimes "Touch ID or Windows Hello").

Change the setting from "Default" or "Enabled" to Disabled.

Click Relaunch at the bottom of the browser.

For Edge:

Type edge://flags in the address bar.

Search for web authentication.

Disable "Microsoft Edge uses the Windows WebAuthentication API".

Restart Edge.

Or you could also go to https://account.microsoft.com/security, sign in, then under Advanced security options remove any saved passkeys or sign-in options you do not want.

You can also refer to this thread for more information: Why am I being asked for a Passkey? How do I turn off passkeys? - Microsoft Q&A
Ian-T 8,920 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-12-19T06:20:30.89+00:00

Dear TNMQ,

I'm following up for Bryan-V

Have you had an opportunity to review the answer shared earlier?

Any update you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 2

Dear TNMQ,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A Forum.

You could try the following steps to resolve this issue:

The cancel trick:
- When the Windows Security popup appears asking for a security key, don't insert anything.
- Click the "Cancel" button on that Windows Security dialog.
- Immediately click again on the website's "Sign in with a passkey" button.
- In many cases, the browser will show its own passkey menu including using a passkey from another device.
Disable Windows Hello passkeys:
- Press Windows + I to go to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options
- Under "Windows Hello" or "Security keys," click "Remove"
Using Registry:
- Go to Start, type regedit, right-click Registry Editor > Run as administrator.
- Go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI
- Right-click the right pane > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
- Name it: DisablePasswordless
- Double-click it > Set Value data to 1 > OK.
- Close Registry Editor > Restart your PC then try again.
Disclaimer: Generally, modifying registry subkeys or work group is intended for advanced users, administrators, and IT Professionals. It can help fix some problems, however, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For further protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs.

If the provided solution does not resolve the issue, please let me know so I can conduct further research to assist you.

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