What is authentication?
Authentication is the process of verifying a user’s identity before granting them access to a system or resource. It’s like checking someone’s ID before letting them into a restricted area. In the digital world, this usually involves checking credentials like passwords, tokens, or other factors.
What is top use cases of authentication?
Top Use Cases of Authentication:
- Securing online accounts: Protecting user data and preventing unauthorized access to email, bank accounts, social media profiles, etc.
- Controlling access to applications and systems: Ensuring only authorized users can access sensitive information or perform specific actions.
- Enabling secure transactions: Verifying users during online payments, money transfers, and other financial activities.
- Protecting networks and devices: Granting access to connected devices and preventing unauthorized access to network resources.
What are feature of authentication?
Key features of authentication typically include:
- Secure identification: Using unique and confidential credentials, such as usernames or email addresses, along with passwords or cryptographic keys.
- Authorization management: Determining what level of access rights or permissions an authenticated user should have.
- Multi-factor authentication (MFA): Enhancing security by requiring multiple forms of authentication, such as biometrics or hardware tokens.
- Auditing and logging: Keeping track of authentication attempts and activities for monitoring and analysis purposes.
What is the workflow of authentication?
The workflow of authentication usually involves the following steps:
- User initiates authentication by providing their credentials (username and password, for example).
- The authentication system validates the provided credentials.
- If the credentials are valid, the system generates a token or session identifier to represent the authenticated user.
- The user is granted access to the requested resource or system based on their authentication status.
- The authentication token or session identifier may need to be periodically renewed or revalidated, depending on the system’s settings.