# Credential management for AI agents

DevFeed: [Credential management for AI agents](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/credential-management-for-ai-agents-1910.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://1password.com/blog/credential-management-for-ai-agents>)

Author: info@1password.com (Rachel Sudbeck)

Published: 2026-05-07T00:00:00Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Blog on 1Password Blog](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/blog-on-1password-blog.md>)

Topics: [AI Bots](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/ai-bots.md>), [passwords](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/passwords.md>), [MFA](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/mfa.md>)

Tags: [ai](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ai.md>), [ai-agents](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ai-agents.md>), [api-keys](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/api-keys.md>), [developer](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/developer.md>), [identity](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/identity.md>), [management](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/management.md>), [mfa](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/mfa.md>), [saas](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/saas.md>), [secrets](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/secrets.md>), [security](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/security.md>), [unified-access](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/unified-access.md>)

## AI overview

The article examines how AI agents intensify credential sprawl by creating, using, and replicating non-human credentials at machine scale. It highlights risks from overprivileged, long-lived, and poorly audited API keys and service accounts, alongside gaps in traditional identity controls.

## Source excerpt

This blog has been adapted from an excerpted section of 1Password's ebook: Credential sprawl: How AI increases the risks. To read the complete ebook and learn more about the evolving challenges of credential sprawl, click here. The proliferation of credentials outside centralized visibility and control is known as "credential sprawl," and attackers are eager to take advantage of it. Unfortunately, credential management is a broad problem that only grows in complexity as organizations add new tools, employees, and partners. Today's companies have to manage an ever-growing number of credentials that go well beyond traditional passwords, such as developer secrets, passkeys, shared logins, API keys, SSH keys, service accounts, and SSO access tokens. Each of these, if exposed in an attack or breach, can have severe consequences, and developer secrets pose particular, systemic risk. Addressing credential sprawl has become especially urgent due to the rise of AI-based tools and agents. AI agents are a primary driver of credential sprawl because they create, use, and replicate credentials at machine scale. They have unique access needs and can behave both autonomously and unpredictably. Companies that want to integrate AI-based tools must carefully consider how to mitigate these risks to avoid an exponential rise in unmanaged and vulnerable credentials. How do AI agents increase credential risk? AI agents increase credential security risks through their reliance on non-human identities like API keys and service accounts, which are frequently overprivileged, long-lived, and poorly audited. Agents create and use these credentials at machine scale, beyond centralized oversight, leading to rapidly expanding credential sprawl with limited oversight for security teams. And while AI tools and agents pose new and distinct risks, they're also expanding on credential problems that have existed for years, stemming from SaaS sprawl, shadow IT, and unsafe developer practices. Traditiona