These Marshmallow fingerprint-enabled apps will keep your data secured with just your fingerprint

By now you've probably heard that the Nexus 5X and 6P both come with a fingerprint scanner that utilizes the Marshmallow fingerprint API. This allows you to unlock your phone, authorize purchases, and unlock specific apps from the Google Play Store. There aren't a ton of apps available yet that utilize this feature just yet, so we went ahead and put together a list for you.

There are about two dozen active apps that use Marshmallow's fingerprint API right now. This isn't surprising, and we're certain to see plenty more as we move forward. For now we've separated the apps we did find into four categories: Password Keepers, Payments and Banking, Lockers, and Miscellaneous.

Password Keepers

Password keepers are exactly what they sound like. It's a single app that is used as a hub to keep track of all of your passwords, and keep them all safe in a single place. This has two major benefits, especially if you're someone who is regularly forgetting which password is connected with which account.

The first and most obvious is that having all your passwords stored in a single place means that you'll always have your passwords at your fingertips. This means no more endless attempts at remembering the right combination, or having to change your passwords because you can't remember what they were the last time you used a particular account.

The second benefit of having your passwords in one place is a security measure. If you get notified that an account has been compromised, you can easily see what other accounts share that password so that you can better protect yourself. Many password vault apps also offer the option to generate strong passwords that are long and filled with special characters that are harder to crack. With Marshmallow's fingerprint API, you have the ability to make sure nobody can just pick up your phone and see your passwords.

Payments and Banking

Most of us have used our phones to make at least one purchase, whether it was a digital transaction or you were taking advantage of Android Pay in a brick and mortar store. One of the big concerns with attaching your bank card to an app has been security. What happens if you leave your phone somewhere by accident, or it's stolen and someone manages to get to that app and use your account fraudulently?

Well, the below apps allow you to add another layer of authentication by using the Marshmallow fingerprint to authorize your purchases.

Lockers

There are a variety of ways of protecting your phone from outside use. However sometimes we want to hand our phone over to a friend. Whether it's so they can see that fantastic picture you managed to snap at the bar, or show them the twitter post that just can't be scrolled by. At the same time, when you hand over your phone, there may well be things that you don't want your friends to see.

Below, are apps that will lock your screen, certain apps, and even your gallery. They give you control over what can be seen by who, which is the next step is keeping the things you want private away from prying eyes.

Miscellaneous

There are plenty of ways that the Marshmallow fingerprint API allows developers to integrate fingerprint scanners into their apps. That also means that we're going to see it utilized in a variety of was that we haven't even thought about yet. That's where the apps below come in. These are a variety of different kinds of apps that are all using the new fingerprint API in their own unique ways like adding a fingerprint to an e-signature. It's really exciting to see what developers are doing to utilize this fantastic new feature in ways that make sense for their apps.

These are just the first batch of apps available on the Google Play Store that are taking advantage of the Marshmallow fingerprint API. While there isn't a huge selection right now, that's going to change as we move forward and more developers find uses for the Marshmallow fingerprint technology. Are you excited to see more apps that can be authorized with the press of a finger? Is there an awesome app that we missed from this list? Let us know in the comments!

Jen is a staff writer who spends her time researching the products you didn't know you needed. She's also a fantasy novelist and has a serious Civ VI addiction. You can follow her on Twitter.