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Product & Engineering

Duo Passport: Enhancing the Passkey Experience

As the world embraces the future of passwordless authentication with passkeys, Duo Security continues to innovate and provide solutions that enhance the user experience while maintaining robust security. One such solution is Duo Passport, a feature that complements the power of passkeys by enabling seamless access across different applications and platforms.

The challenge of siloed authentication

In the traditional authentication landscape, users often face the frustration of having to repeatedly log in and authenticate across various applications and devices. Even with the adoption of passkeys, which eliminate the need for passwords, the authentication session can remain siloed within a specific application or browser context. This fragmentation can lead to logon fatigue and diminish the user experience, particularly in enterprise environments where employees need to access multiple resources throughout the day.

Duo Passport: Bridging the gap

Duo Passport addresses this challenge by enabling shared remembered device sessions between browser and desktop applications when accessed using Duo Desktop and a remembered devices policy. Here's how it works:

When Passport-enabled users sign in with Duo, Duo Desktop performs automatic device registration by attempting to generate a key pair, register the public key with Duo and use the key to sign further reports sent to Duo. This process allows the trusted session information used by Duo authentication to be shared between browser and desktop apps.

Without Duo Passport, Duo stores the trusted session information locally on the user's device, preventing seamless access across different applications and platforms. However, with Duo Passport leveraging the automatic registration and payload signing features of Duo Desktop, users can enjoy a shared Passport session experience where they sign in once and seamlessly access browser and desktop applications without re-entering credentials or repeating two-factor authentication.

Benefits of Duo Passport

  1. Improved User Experience: By eliminating the need for repeated logins and authentication prompts, Duo Passport significantly enhances the user experience, reducing logon fatigue and increasing productivity.

  2. Seamless Access: Users can seamlessly transition between different applications and platforms without interruptions, providing a consistent and cohesive authentication experience.

  3. Enhanced Security: Duo Passport leverages the security features of Duo Desktop, including automatic device registration and payload signing, ensuring that the shared authentication session remains secure and resistant to potential threats.

  4. Compatibility With Passkeys: Duo Passport complements the adoption of passkeys by enabling a shared authentication experience across different applications and platforms, further enhancing the benefits of passwordless authentication.

As organizations continue to embrace the future of authentication with passkeys, Duo Passport offers a valuable solution for bridging the gap between different applications and platforms, ensuring a seamless and secure user experience.

Want to experience Duo Passport for yourself? Sign up for a free trial today!