With passkeys gaining momentum in digital security, companies are beginning to realize the full potential of a passwordless experience. Whether it’s preventing account takeovers (ATOs), boosting user security, and enhancing login convenience, passkeys will level up your business. But as your team considers implementing passkeys, a fundamental question will arise: should you build your own solution or rely on an established provider?

Deciding between building or buying requires weighing a few critical factors: the technical complexity of setup, user experience, ongoing maintenance, and meeting security and compliance standards. Here, we break down each of these to help you decide, and show how Passage by 1Password can help your team achieve seamless, secure passkey implementation without the hassle and heavy lift required.

1. Technical Complexity: More Than Meets the Eye

At first glance, setting up passkeys seems simple: trigger a few WebAuthn API calls, and you’re set. However, the real-world implementation is anything but straightforward. As companies quickly discover, implementing passkeys isn’t just about calling navigator.credentials.create() or navigator.credentials.get(), it involves:

• Handling Edge Cases: Beyond the basics, building a stable solution requires fallback methods for users who can’t use passkeys, accounting for cross-platform compatibility, alternative authentication options, and cases where users switch devices. Your application needs to dynamically adapt to users’ devices and passkey compatibility, avoiding dead-ends and providing intuitive paths for all users, even those on unsupported platforms.
• Conditional UI: Your application should support best-in-class passkey features like Conditional UI (or passkey autofill). This isn’t supported everywhere just yet, so building an interoperable experience is key.
• Cross-Device Functionality: Passkeys should offer a seamless experience across devices, a feat that requires robust session management and conditional login options to ensure users don’t experience unnecessary friction when they are signing in on a new device.

As the saying goes, the last 10% is 90% of the work, and in passkey implementation, that 10% encompasses all the critical edge cases and UI considerations that make or break the user experience. At Passage by 1Password, we’ve solved these challenges already, helping teams get past the technical hurdles so they can focus on what they do best.

2. User Experience: Getting It Right Matters

Passkeys are still new, and for many users, they can be confusing. The way you introduce and guide users through passkey creation and login flows is key to achieving adoption. When companies go the DIY route, they often overlook key UX elements, resulting in:

• User Frustration from Confusing Flows: Poorly designed or inconsistent fallback options can lead users to dead ends or cause them to abandon the process altogether. At Passage by 1Password, we’ve done extensive user research to understand these pain points. We know how to position passkey options clearly and when to encourage users to create passkeys without disrupting their experience.
• Clear Messaging and Guidance: It’s not enough to just add a passkey button; users need intuitive guidance on when and why they should use passkeys. Our solution is designed to seamlessly prompt users at the right time, reducing the need for training or support intervention.

With Passage by 1Password, you’re tapping into a passkey implementation that’s been fine-tuned with the end-user in mind. We’ve done the heavy lifting to ensure your users enjoy a research-backed, frictionless, intuitive experience. 

3. Maintenance and Future-Proofing: Staying Ahead with Minimal Effort

Passkeys are evolving rapidly, with new APIs, extensions, and security protocols emerging to keep up with industry needs. Maintaining your passkey solution involves more than just routine upkeep, it requires keeping up with new standards and ensuring cross-platform compatibility over time.

• Rapid Industry Changes: As new passkey features roll out, your team will need to monitor updates, make adjustments, and continuously test compatibility across devices and browsers. At Passage by 1Password, we are involved in the evolution of the passkey APIs and specifications, so we know what is coming before it is here. Our team handles new features and updates for you, ensuring your passkey solution remains compliant and effective without requiring extensive developer hours.
• Seamless Updates: Choosing our solution means you’ll always have the latest features and security protocols in place. This lets your engineers focus on building your core product instead of troubleshooting evolving passkey complexities.

4. Security and Compliance: Ensuring Trust and Meeting Standards

For many companies, security and regulatory compliance are top priorities when deciding to implement new authentication methods. Building a secure passkey solution from scratch is not only technically challenging but also requires ensuring compliance with evolving industry standards (such as WebAuthn) and regulatory requirements (like SOC-2).

• Enhanced Security Without Lock-In: While DIY solutions may struggle to balance security with usability, Passage by 1Password offers a robust passkey solution that minimizes lock-in risks, ensuring that users have control over their data without being tied to specific devices or platforms.
• Compliance and Auditing: Implementing compliant passkeys involves ensuring that data is encrypted, securely stored, and auditable for compliance purposes. When you implement our solution, you gain a fully compliant, secure solution that meets industry standards and simplifies auditing, saving time for security and legal teams alike.

The Smarter Path to Passkeys: Why Passage by 1Password Does It Best

Implementing passkeys can revamp both your security and user experience, but achieving a seamless, future-proof solution involves navigating significant technical challenges. By choosing Passage by 1Password, you’re opting for a solution that not only mitigates these complexities but also elevates your authentication flow with built-in advantages:

• Best In-Class Security and Compliance, meeting today’s highest security standards without the hassle of ongoing audits and regulatory hurdles.
• Reduced Technical Complexity through a streamlined, ready-to-use integration that handles all edge cases and cross-device compatibility.
• User-Centric Experience backed by extensive research, ensuring smooth and intuitive user journeys that maximize passkey adoption.
• Continuous Updates and Minimal Maintenance as our team keeps your solution current with the latest passkey standards and best practices.

With Passage by 1Password, your team can focus on what it does best while preventing account takeovers, improving user experience around sign in, and saving engineering time. When you’re ready for us, we’ll be here, simply drop us a note to get in touch with our amazing team!