Web3 Authentication: A Practical Guide for Developers (2025)

#web3 #programming #devplusplus #cryptocurrency

TL;DR

Web3 authentication (web3 auth) lets users sign in with a wallet—no passwords.
Use Openfort to add embedded, non-custodial wallets with recovery, right inside your app (no pop-ups, no seed phrases).
Keep Supabase/Firebase/Better Auth; just add wallets. Other paths exist (Supabase Web3, Firebase+Moralis, Magic.link, Web3Auth), but Openfort ties the flow together.

Why web3 authentication

Passwordless: users sign a nonce; you verify the signature.
Portable identity: any EIP-1193 wallet works, including embedded wallets.
Less PII: wallet address can be the primary identifier.

Goal for 2025: conversion. Fewer pop-ups, fewer seed phrases, faster first tx.

The pragmatic pick: Openfort

Adds embedded, non-custodial wallets directly inside your UI. It works with your current auth and supports recovery (automatic, passkey, password). It also exposes a standard EIP-1193 provider so wagmi/viem “just works.”

Minimal demo (React) TSX

// Providers.tsx
import { OpenfortProvider } from "@openfort/react";
import { WagmiProvider, createConfig } from "wagmi";
import { getDefaultConfig } from "@openfort/react"; // or from your setup
import { polygonAmoy } from "viem/chains";
import { QueryClient, QueryClientProvider } from "@tanstack/react-query";

const config = createConfig(getDefaultConfig({
  appName: "openfort-demo",
  chains: [polygonAmoy],
  ssr: true,
}));

const qc = new QueryClient();

export default function Providers({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
  return (
    <WagmiProvider config={config}>
      <QueryClientProvider client={qc}>
        <OpenfortProvider
          publishableKey={process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_OPENFORT_PUBLISHABLE_KEY!}
          walletConfig={{
            shieldPublishableKey: process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_OPENFORT_SHIELD_PUBLISHABLE_KEY!,
            createEncryptedSessionEndpoint: "/api/shield-session",
          }}
        >
          {children}
        </OpenfortProvider>
      </QueryClientProvider>
    </WagmiProvider>
  );
}

// /api/shield-session (server)
import Openfort from "@openfort/openfort-node";
const openfort = new Openfort(process.env.OPENFORT_SECRET_KEY!);

export default async function handler(_req, res) {
  try {
    const session = await openfort.registerRecoverySession(
      process.env.OPENFORT_SHIELD_PUBLISHABLE_KEY!,
      process.env.OPENFORT_SHIELD_SECRET_KEY!,
      process.env.OPENFORT_SHIELD_ENCRYPTION_SHARE!
    );
    res.status(200).json({ session });
  } catch (e) {
    res.status(500).json({ error: "internal_error" });
  }
}

Check docs for exact imports, key names, and one-click deploy options.

Web3 auth options (quick comparison)

Option	What it is	Wallet UX	Recovery	Works with	Best for
Openfort	Embedded, non-custodial wallets	In-app, no pop-ups (EIP-1193)	Auto / Passkey / Password (no seed phrase)	Supabase, Firebase, Better Auth (recipes)	Keep your auth; add wallets + tx UX fast
Supabase Web3 Auth	Off-chain wallet sign-in (SIWE / Solana)	You build the wallet UX	N/A (auth only)	Supabase stack	Already on Supabase; need wallet login
Firebase + Moralis	Wallet sign-in for Firebase apps	You build the wallet UX	N/A (auth only)	Firebase stack	Already on Firebase; need wallet login
Magic.link	Passwordless + embedded wallets	Embedded via vendor	Vendor recovery	Their auth or yours	One vendor for auth + wallet
Web3Auth	Social logins + MPC/AA wallets	Embedded/MPC via vendor	MPC recovery	Many auth providers	Social/MPC wallet infra

Implementation patterns

If you use Supabase Auth now

Enable Sign in with Web3 (EIP-4361).
Add Openfort for embedded wallets + recovery and keep wagmi/viem via EIP-1193.

If you use Firebase Auth now

Add wallet sign-in with Moralis.
Add Openfort to embed non-custodial wallets and remove seed-phrase UX.

Greenfield

Start with Openfort React → pick recovery → drop .
Plug in Supabase/Firebase/Better Auth later via the Openfort recipes.

Security checklist (short)
Use SIWE / EIP-4361 with unique nonces + domain binding.
Keep secret and Shield keys server-side only.
Interact via EIP-1193 provider for broad wallet compatibility.

Links you’ll need

Openfort Recipes (Supabase / Firebase / Better Auth)
Openfort Overview & Quickstarts
EIP-4361 (SIWE) and EIP-1193 (provider) — include in your README for teammates.

What's blocking your project then?

What’s blocking your web3 authentication rollout today—seed phrases, pop-ups, or team bandwidth?

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