⚠️ WARNING: This article is intended for participants in the MFA Modernization Pilot only. If you are not a pilot participant, the information in this article may not apply to you. Contact the
IT Service Desk if you have questions about your current sign-in experience.
This article walks you through adding a passkey to your University of Maine System (UMS) account using a Mac. A passkey lets you sign in using Touch ID or your Mac login password instead of a UMS password.
ℹ️ INFO: We recommend setting up at least two sign-in methods on two different devices, such as this passkey on your computer plus the Microsoft Authenticator app on your phone, so you are not locked out if you lose access to one device.
How would you like to complete this setup?
ICON KEY: 💻 = do this on your computer
Before you begin
❗ IMPORTANT: Make sure you are setting up iCloud using the correct account. Students and employees on personal devices: do not create an iCloud account using your maine.edu email. Use a personal iCloud account instead. Employees, including faculty, staff, and persons of interest (POIs): please contact IT End User Technology (EUT) for advice on using an iCloud account on your University-managed macOS device.
Creating your passkey
- 💻 On your Mac, open Safari and go to aka.ms/mysecurityinfo. Sign in if prompted.
- 💻 Under "Security info," click Add sign-in method.
- 💻 In the "Add a sign-in method" box, select Passkey, then click Add.
- 💻 In the "Sign in faster with your face, fingerprint, or PIN" dialog, click Next.
- 💻 In the "Setting up your passkey" dialog, click Next.
- 💻 In the "Save a passkey?" box, select Passwords, then click Continue.
- 💻 When prompted, enter your Mac login password, not your UMS password, to unlock. If you are prompted for Touch ID instead, that also completes this step.
- 💻 In the "Let's name your passkey" box, enter a name for your passkey, for example "MacBook" or "iMac," then click Next.
- 💻 In the "Passkey created" confirmation box, click Done.
- 💻 You should now see Passkey (Synced) listed under your sign-in methods.
You have successfully added a passkey as an MFA sign-in method for your UMS account. If this is the only sign-in method on your account, we recommend adding a second one on a different device before you finish. See the other articles in the How-To Guides collection for additional methods.
Use the interactive walkthrough below to follow along step by step.
If you run into an issue not covered here, see the MFA Troubleshooting knowledge base articles.
The IT Service Desk is available by phone, email, chat, and walk-up if additional support is needed.
Environment
- Applies to all University of Maine System (UMS) accounts
- Mac, MacBook, iMac, or Mac mini running macOS Ventura (13.0) or later
- iCloud account, signed in, with iCloud Passwords sync enabled