Passkey backup and recovery best practices

The most popular form of passwordless authentication is passkeys, and they aren't going away. 

If you've never heard of passkeys, in a nutshell, they are a form of public key encryption that uses a device to store the private key. When a user creates passkeys for a service (such as Amazon), cryptographic key pairs are created: public and private. When you log in, the server sends a cryptographic challenge to your device. After you unlock your device, your private key signs this challenge, and the server verifies the signature using the public key. If the server confirms the signature, you're logged into the website or service.

One thing to note about passkeys is that with the private key stored on your mobile device, if you lose or upgrade your device, you could lose your passkey, making it considerably harder to log into your account. However, there’s a solution for that: cross-platform passkeys and regular backups.

Using a password manager like Bitwarden can help you sync and backup your passkeys.

For more information check out this article on passkey storage.

The importance of backups cannot be overstated. Unlike usernames and passwords, you can't memorize a passkey that is used to access or authenticate your various accounts. Because of that, syncing your passkeys and creating passkey backups is essential for ensuring personal and business continuity.

A passkey backup protects against losing access to your accounts if you lose or upgrade your device. Passkeys offer stronger security than traditional passwords by using public key cryptography, which is resistant to phishing and credential theft. 

Without a backup of your passkeys, should you lose your device, you will have to jump through some rather complicated hoops to gain access to any account protected by a passkey.

Bitwarden clients like the browser extension, allow you to save passkeys in your vaults and use them via the extension. 

Because those passkeys are stored in your vault, when you back up that vault, you are also backing up your passkeys. What that means is if something goes wrong with your desktop, laptop, or mobile instance, you can also import the latest backup you created, which will include any stored passkey.

Backing up your Bitwarden vault is the easiest and most reliable way to back up your passkeys.

With Bitwarden, you can export a backup file with the web app, browser extension, desktop and CLI, and store it in a location of your choosing, such as an encrypted or offline hard drive. 

With a Bitwarden backup, you can import it into Bitwarden and be back in business in seconds.

The key with Bitwarden is to make regular backups, as you don't want to find yourself missing any new vault entries that were created since your last export.

Implement effective strategies that ensure data integrity, such as:

1. Choosing a regular day and time to create your backups, such as once a week.

2. Enable 2FA on your Bitwarden account and strong and unique master password..

3. Keep an updated security readiness kit.

4. Keep your kit and backups in a secure location such as a physical fireproof safe.

Failing to implement a robust passkey backup strategy can result in:

• Unauthorized data access

• System breaches and security incidents

• Data loss and irreparable damage

• The inability to access your accounts and services

Implementing effective passkey backup strategies is crucial for protecting sensitive information and ensuring that you can always access your accounts.

Instead of having to manually run the vault backup process, you could always use the Bitwarden command-line tool by way of a script. If you want to set that up, check out "How to back up and encrypt your Bitwarden vault from the command line."

Choose a frequency, such as once a month to test your backup strategy. Make sure you have easy access to any encrypted drives, offline hard drives, or a physical safe. It’s also a good idea to try logging in using the instructions listed on your security readiness kit to ensure continued access.