In the Web3 space for a long time, even if you are careful and lucky enough not to experience the dark moment of having your assets stolen, you have definitely heard such pleas for help in the community:

"I never took a screenshot, nor did I share my mnemonic phrase with anyone; I just used my wallet normally. Why are my assets still gone?" The most despairing commonality in these cases is that the victims have no idea where they were compromised:

Some unknowingly installed a tampered browser extension; some stored their mnemonic phrase in a note on their phone, which was synced to an unknown server; some had their phone infected with malware, silently uploading clipboard content; and some even connected to a fake website, entered their mnemonic phrase, and seconds later, their wallet assets were instantly wiped out…

This is not alarmism. It can be said that the vast majority of phishing scams in the crypto space often have a common vulnerability—mnemonic phrases. This article will also analyze why mnemonic phrases are becoming the biggest soft spot for asset security, and how Account Abstraction (AA) and Passkey are expected to redefine asset sovereignty.

1. The Limits of EOA Model: "Mnemonic Phrases" Become a Curse

We must acknowledge a fact: The problem with EOA accounts is not that they are "not secure," but that they have taken on too much from the very beginning.

As is well known, in the traditional EOA model, the mnemonic phrase is the cornerstone of the crypto world. A 12 or 24-word seed phrase represents absolute control over on-chain assets and constitutes the most significant feature of cryptocurrency security in the eyes of newcomers—"Private Key / Mnemonic Phrase Equals Assets":

As long as you hold this key, no one, whether an exchange or a validator, can freeze, confiscate, or operate on your behalf. However, at the same time, this complete decentralization is like a double-edged sword, representing "absolute control," but also an unavoidable "single point of failure."

First, there is no "undo" option. Once your mnemonic phrase is leaked (even if it’s just a screenshot taken years ago, as long as it has been copied or synced), your wallet is forever unsafe, and you cannot reset the mnemonic phrase like you would "change a password" in a bank / Alipay / WeChat app.

The only way is to abandon the wallet and transfer assets, which means if the attacker acts faster than you, you have no chance to "revoke" or recover.

Second, it is a "perfect honeypot" in the eyes of hackers. After all, the permissions of the mnemonic phrase are too great. Trojans, fake wallets, disguised plugins, phishing websites, fake customer service, etc., hackers do not need to break through the robust cryptographic defenses of the blockchain; they only need to break through your guard. All attack routes ultimately converge on the same target, which is to induce you to hand over those 12/24 words.

Finally, for modern users accustomed to Face ID and fingerprint payments, understanding and securely storing a paper mnemonic phrase is a huge cognitive barrier. This not only hinders the mass adoption of Web3 but also makes every interaction accompanied by the psychological burden of "Will I lose it?"

It’s like guarding a door that can only be opened with "the same key," and this key is exposed both in the user's daily operations and in the risks of all devices and system environments.

It is against this backdrop that, starting in 2022, wallets without mnemonic phrases or plaintext private keys beyond the limits of EOA have gradually become a prominent field of study. From MPC technology to CA wallets, everyone is exploring a better solution—one that can have asset sovereignty in Web3 while being as simple and secure as using Face ID to unlock a phone.

Standing at this juncture, with the combination of Account Abstraction (AA) and Passkey technology, we may truly hope to end the era of mnemonic phrases in the next decade.

2. Passkey: Turning "Yourself" into the Key

If Account Abstraction (AA) liberates accounts from "single private keys" and enters a new era of recoverable, upgradeable, and configurable accounts (see further reading "From EOA to Account Abstraction: Will the Next Leap in Web3 Happen in the 'Account System'?"), then Passkey is the "ultimate key" that drives a qualitative change in user experience.

Many people may still feel unfamiliar with the term Passkey. In fact, as a passwordless login technology based on the FIDO standard, it has long been promoted by tech giants like Apple and Google as the next generation of passwordless technology future standard.

In the crypto world, its significance is particularly profound.

Simply put, a Passkey is a digital key stored in the secure chip of your device (such as a phone or computer). It no longer requires you to memorize, save, or input a mnemonic phrase; you only need to use biometric recognition (Face ID / fingerprint) on the device to log in and sign.

In fact, many people have already unknowingly enjoyed the convenience of Passkey: when you log into an app on an Apple device or a website in a browser, you only need to "scan your face" / fingerprint / enter a PIN code to accomplish what used to require entering a password.

The reason this experience is so appealing is that it is both smooth and secure. Therefore, if a Web3 wallet supports Passkey, theoretically, users would not need to interact with private keys at all, and even combined with Account Abstraction, the Gas step could also be abstracted away, creating an unprecedented "seamless operation" experience.

So why is Passkey inherently more resistant to phishing than the EOA model? Because it possesses two superpowers that traditional mnemonic phrase models can never have:

• Your private key never leaves the device and cannot be "stolen": A mnemonic phrase is a string of characters that you can share with others, but a Passkey is bound to your hardware device, meaning the private key never leaves your device. Hackers cannot trick you into "inputting" your fingerprint or facial data through phishing websites or tampered browser plugins;
• Eliminating fake websites from the ground up: This is one of the core advantages of Passkey. Relying on the binding mechanism of WebAuthn / FIDO2, the Passkey protocol will enforce verification of the current website's domain name, meaning that even if you accidentally enter a scam website (like many imToken imitation scam sites that send SMS harassment), your device will detect the domain mismatch and refuse to perform biometric verification. This is a system-level defense that does not rely on your manual judgment.

At the same time, the Passkey experience is also smooth enough; there is no need to copy mnemonic phrases, take screenshots, or back them up. You only need to touch your fingerprint or scan your face to log in, sign, and authorize.

Because of this, Passkey combined with AA can be seen as a solution in the Web3 world that elevates both experience and security, rather than a patch that requires users to be more cautious and learn how to use it.

3. The Next Generation of Web3 Security and Experience Philosophy

From this perspective, when AA meets Passkey, we can finally build a more intuitive, secure, and future-oriented account model.

You can understand this new security and experience philosophy as follows:

• You are the key: Accounts are protected by the device itself, and Face ID / fingerprint is your signature;
• Physical isolation: Security is hardware-level, stored in a secure chip, cannot be exported, and will not be read by malware;
• Cloud roaming: With synchronization methods like iCloud, accounts can securely roam across multiple devices;
• System defense: Instead of making users work harder to distinguish between real and fake websites, the system automatically intercepts risks more intelligently.

All of this constitutes a new paradigm, not one that requires users to work harder to learn and prevent, but one that makes the system smarter.

Taking imToken Web as an example, it is a non-custodial, token-centric web application designed to allow users to quickly and securely create or log into accounts without setting up or backing up private keys / mnemonic phrases, enjoying diverse token functionalities anytime and anywhere.

For example, using imToken Web, you will experience an almost barrier-free "four no" experience:

• No barrier to creation: No need to find paper and pen to write down 12 words, nor worry about copying the mnemonic phrase incorrectly. Just click to connect the wallet, verify Face ID / fingerprint, and the account is generated immediately;
• No fear of phishing risks: Because login relies on Passkey, fake websites cannot pass domain verification, so they cannot trigger signatures, and your private key will never be exposed;
• No Gas anxiety: As an AA wallet, imToken Web supports using USDT/USDC to directly pay Gas, so you no longer have to worry about being stuck because there is no ETH in your account.
• Seamless device roaming: With system-level synchronization capabilities, your Passkey can naturally sync across your Apple or Google ecosystem devices. Even if your phone is lost, you can log into your system account (Apple ID / Google) on a new device, verify biometric recognition, and your account remains secure and recoverable;

Interestingly, this low-barrier experience unlocks a new way of interaction.

Based on this, you can even send tokens on imToken Web like sending red envelopes. For example, by choosing "Send via Link," setting the "Amount" and "Link Validity Period," you can create a link and then send it to anyone through WeChat, Twitter, or Telegram (even if they don’t have a wallet).

The recipient does not need any prior setup; they just need to click the link to securely and conveniently create an account and receive assets through the "Passkey."

In Conclusion

The future of Web3 should not be a place where only geeks can survive.

In fact, in the uncertain world of Web3, a platform like imToken Web that encapsulates the most hardcore security technologies (AA & Passkey) into the simplest user experience, thereby lowering the security threshold and experience for both new and existing users, is precisely what wallets as traffic entry should explore in the next decade.

So, if you are tired of the anxiety of keeping mnemonic phrases, if you are worried about becoming the next victim of a phishing attack, or if you just want to recommend a "user-friendly" crypto wallet to your friends.

Then, it is time to look forward to or try a future without mnemonic phrases.

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