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WebAuthn/FIDO2 Error — Passkey and Security Key Authentication Failures

Errorsecurity

Overview

Fix WebAuthn and FIDO2 authentication errors when passkeys, security keys, or biometric authentication fail during website login.

Key Details

  • WebAuthn (Web Authentication) is the browser API for passwordless login using FIDO2 credentials
  • It supports passkeys (synced), platform authenticators (fingerprint, face), and roaming authenticators (USB keys)
  • Passkeys sync across devices via iCloud Keychain (Apple), Google Password Manager, or Windows Hello
  • WebAuthn requires HTTPS and the relying party ID (domain) must match the website domain
  • Browser support: Chrome 67+, Firefox 60+, Safari 14+, Edge 18+ — but feature levels vary

Common Causes

  • Relying party ID (rpId) does not match the website domain or a valid subdomain
  • User cancelled the authenticator prompt or biometric check failed
  • Security key not supported — wrong protocol (FIDO U2F instead of FIDO2) or unsupported transport
  • Passkey created on a different device and not yet synced to the current device

Steps

  1. 1Check the error type: NotAllowedError (user cancelled), InvalidStateError (credential exists), SecurityError (domain mismatch)
  2. 2Verify rpId matches the website domain: rpId 'example.com' works on example.com and sub.example.com
  3. 3For passkeys: ensure the user's passkey provider (iCloud, Google) is synced on the current device
  4. 4For security keys: ensure the key supports FIDO2/WebAuthn (not just FIDO U2F for some operations)
  5. 5Provide fallback authentication (password, OTP) when WebAuthn fails

Tags

webauthnfido2passkeysecurity-keybiometric

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Frequently Asked Questions

Passkeys are FIDO2 credentials that sync across devices via a cloud provider (iCloud, Google). Security keys are physical devices (YubiKey, Titan) that store credentials locally on the hardware. Passkeys are more convenient; security keys are more secure.