Troubleshooting Guide
Fix passkey problems after switching phones
Phone upgrades are one of the most common passkey failure moments. The account may still trust the old device, while the new phone is not fully ready to present the credential yet.
Quick fixes
- Keep the old phone available until you confirm passkey login on the new one.
- Complete one fallback login first if the new phone does not show the passkey.
- Create a new passkey on the new phone before removing the old device entry.
- Only then remove stale passkeys tied to the previous phone.
Why phone changes break passkeys
Passkeys are resilient, but device migration still changes trust state, local credential availability, and which authenticator your account expects to use.
Problems are most common when the old phone is wiped too early, the new device is still syncing, or the user switches ecosystem at the same time.
Migration sequence that avoids lockout
Start with a controlled fallback login if needed. Then create a fresh passkey on the new phone and test it immediately in a clean session.
Only after the new device works should you remove old phone credentials or reset recovery settings.
Best long-term setup after migration
Keep passkeys registered on more than one device, especially for email, identity, and banking accounts.
A backup hardware key or secondary trusted device makes future phone replacements much less risky.
FAQ
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