Authentication is successfully validating that an entity you are communicating with is actually who they claim to be. The entity typically demonstrates who they are by showing they possess a secret that only they could know.
Authentication is successfully validating that an entity you are communicating with is actually who they claim to be. The entity typically demonstrates who they are by showing they possess a secret that only they could know.
The entity is not necessarily proving their identity, they could be proving they are a member of a larger group of identities or possess a certain attribute.
Authentication techniques are usually classified as belong to one of three categories (called factors): something the entity knows (password or key), something the entity has (a token or smartcard), or something the entity is (biometrics).
