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Passkey registration breaks after moving off localhost..

0
Medium
Security-newscybersecurityreddit
Published: Wed Jun 03 2026 (06/03/2026, 08:56:11 UTC)
Source: Reddit Cybersecurity

Description

A user reports that passkey registration using WebAuthn works on localhost but breaks when moving to a custom local domain with a self-signed TLS certificate. The error 'NotAllowedError: WebAuthn is not supported on sites with TLS certificate errors' occurs, indicating that the self-signed certificate is untrusted. The user also notes confusion about the relying party ID (rp_id) and origin settings, as including the port in rp_id is likely incorrect but seems to allow registration. This issue appears related to development environment constraints rather than a direct security vulnerability.

Reddit Discussion

r/cybersecurity·posted by u/Sharp_Commercial_166
00

Was prototyping passkeys with @ simplewebauthn and everything worked on localhost.

Moved the app to a real domain on the same port (https://testsite.com:3000, added it to my hosts file), and now navigator.credentials.create() throws:

NotAllowedError: WebAuthn is not supported on sites with TLS certificate errors.

The cert is self-signed (openssl, subjectAltName=DNS:testsite.com, serverAuth, etc.). On the server rp_id = testsite.com and rp_origin = https://testsite.com:3000.

Weirdly it does register if I leave the port on the rp_id, which I'm pretty sure is wrong.

Is this purely the self-signed cert being untrusted, or am I also doing the rp_id/origin wrong?

What's the clean way to get passkey registration working on a custom local domain?

Links cited in this discussion

AI-Powered Analysis

Machine-generated threat intelligence

AILast updated: 06/03/2026, 09:03:29 UTC

Technical Analysis

This issue involves passkey registration failure when transitioning from localhost to a custom local domain using WebAuthn. The failure is caused by the browser rejecting the self-signed TLS certificate, which is required for secure WebAuthn operations. The user observes that including the port in the relying party ID (rp_id) allows registration, though this is against WebAuthn specifications. The root cause is the untrusted self-signed certificate and possibly incorrect rp_id/origin configuration during development.

Potential Impact

The impact is limited to development and testing environments where self-signed certificates are used. It prevents successful passkey registration due to browser security restrictions on TLS certificate trust. There is no indication of a security vulnerability or exploit in production environments. This is a functional issue affecting developer experience rather than a security threat.

Mitigation Recommendations

Use a valid, trusted TLS certificate for the domain to avoid certificate errors during passkey registration. Avoid including the port number in the relying party ID (rp_id), as this is against WebAuthn standards. For local development, consider using tools that provide trusted local certificates (e.g., mkcert) or configure browsers to trust the self-signed certificate explicitly. No official patch is applicable since this is a configuration and environment issue.

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Technical Details

Source Type
reddit
Subreddit
cybersecurity
Reddit Score
0
Discussion Level
minimal
Content Source
reddit_link_post
Post Type
link
Domain
null
Newsworthiness Assessment
{"score":27,"reasons":["external_link","established_author","very_recent"],"isNewsworthy":true,"foundNewsworthy":[],"foundNonNewsworthy":[]}
Has External Source
true
Trusted Domain
false

Threat ID: 6a1feddde29bf47b50929ced

Added to database: 6/3/2026, 9:03:25 AM

Last enriched: 6/3/2026, 9:03:29 AM

Last updated: 6/4/2026, 6:05:38 AM

Views: 15

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