Secure password sharing for web agencies
Web agencies have a particularly complex credential landscape. A single project might involve credentials for a domain registrar, DNS provider, hosting account, CMS admin, database, staging environment, social media profiles, analytics platform, and various third-party integrations. Those credentials need to move between the client, the agency's internal team, and often external contractors — sometimes within the same project.
The agency credential map
Let's walk through a typical web project and the credential touchpoints it creates:
Project start. The client shares existing credentials with the agency: current hosting login, existing CMS credentials, domain registrar access. These often come via email because clients don't know another way to share them.
Development phase. The agency creates staging environments with new credentials, which developers and contractors need access to. Credentials move within the team and to external contractors.
Launch. The agency may access production systems, sometimes with temporary elevated credentials provided by the client or created for the purpose.
Handoff. At project completion, the agency delivers all relevant credentials back to the client: new admin accounts, tool configurations, any services procured on the client's behalf.
Ongoing maintenance. Even after handoff, credentials continue to be exchanged during support requests, updates, and periodic access for maintenance.
Each of these touchpoints is an opportunity for credentials to be handled insecurely — or handled well.
Common mistakes web agencies make
Accepting credentials via plain email. Clients will email credentials if you don't guide them otherwise. Build a standard intake process: "Please use this secure link to share your existing credentials with us."
Sending credentials via project management tools. Basecamp messages, Asana comments, and similar tools retain message history indefinitely. Credentials sent here persist long after the project ends.
Shared password documents. A Google Doc or Notion page of project credentials is convenient but creates a single point of failure. If the document is shared too broadly or the account is compromised, all project credentials are exposed.
Not rotating credentials after contractor access. When a contractor finishes their work, any credentials they received should be rotated. If those credentials were delivered via one-time links, you at least know when they were delivered and that they were used.
A better workflow for agencies
Client credential intake. Create a standard instruction in your project kickoff communication: "For security, please share any existing credentials using [this secure link generator]. This ensures your credentials don't sit in email." Most clients appreciate the professional approach.
Internal delivery. When sharing credentials with internal team members or contractors, use one-time links. Even if you're sharing on Slack or in a project tool, the credential itself travels as a link, not as plain text.
Project handoff. At project close, deliver all credentials to the client via secure links. For each set of credentials, generate a link with a 7-day expiry — enough time for the client to retrieve them during their transition period.
Contractor offboarding. When a contractor's engagement ends, rotate any credentials they had access to. This is easier to remember when credential delivery is documented (which one-time link tools naturally support).
The client relationship benefit
Web agencies often compete on trust and professionalism. Clients are choosing an agency to handle their digital presence — their brand, their audience, their business systems. How you handle their credentials signals whether you're the kind of partner they can trust.
"We use secure one-time links for all credential exchanges — they delete themselves after use" is a statement that resonates with clients who have any security awareness. It's also a true differentiator from agencies that still handle credentials via email.
PassTransfer Pro allows agencies to deliver this experience from their own subdomain with their own branding. The credential delivery page looks like part of your agency's platform — reinforcing the professionalism of every client interaction.
