Asked to unlock with password rather than Touch ID much more often on my Mac

[Alvinc]

I have a 2018-Intel MacBook Air which can’t be upgraded to macOS 26 but can still receive a security update to 14.8. After updating, almost every time I am told to unlock the MacBook with password rather than Touch ID.

• If I close the lid and open after a few seconds, I am able to unlock with Touch ID.
• If it’s for a longer period, say a minute or more, there is only the password option.
• Sign in with Apple ID, or access my passwords can work well with Touch ID.

Is it due to v14.8 or if I can do something? Before macOS 14.8, I was able to unlock with Touch ID most of the time unless I restart my computer or sometimes it needed to. Not as frequently as every time when it sleeps for a period.

 

[Bigwaff]

Do you have File Vault enabled on your internal storage? Sounds like your MBA is hibernating (saving contents of memory to disk) and requires your password to unlock disk to reload data in memory. Perhaps it is entering hibernation more aggressively to conserve battery. Download and install Coconut Battery and report back battery health.

 

[Alvinc]

Do you have File Vault enabled on your internal storage? Sounds like your MBA is hibernating (saving contents of memory to disk) and requires your password to unlock disk to reload data in memory. Perhaps it is entering hibernation more aggressively to conserve battery. Download and install Coconut Battery and report back battery health.

I have but since day 1 since I bought it, for 6 years. But I notice it is due to macOS 14.8 as I didn't face this on 14.7.8 or before, and Safari 26 might make this more serious because once it was updated yesterday, the laptop was getting extremely hot and the fan was on. The browser kept crashing just after the update, but it is getting better now.

According to your explanation, I think my situation may improve after a few days, and let's see!

Thanks @Bigwaff !