Explore Different Types Of SSO, How Does It Work And It’s Importance, how they work, and their role in secure authentication.
What is SSO?
SSO offers one-time user authentication for numerous websites and apps. Organizations are giving access control techniques that enhance security and user experience top priority because consumers now commonly access apps straight from their browsers. SSO provides both since, after their identity has been verified, users can access all password-protected resources without having to log in again.
Why is SSO important?
Boost password security
People who don’t use SSO have to remember several passwords for several websites. This could result in the use of easy or repeating passwords for various accounts, which are not advised security practices. Additionally, when login onto a service, users may forget or type their credentials incorrectly. SSO encourages users to come up with a strong password that they may use on several websites and avoids password fatigue.
Boost output
Workers frequently utilize multiple company apps, each of which needs its own authentication. It takes time and is ineffective to manually enter the login and password for each application. SSO facilitates access to protected resources and expedites the user validation procedure for enterprise applications.
Cut expenses
Enterprise users may lose their login credentials when they try to remember multiple passwords. As a result, the internal IT teams receive more requests to recover or change their passwords, which adds to their workload. By reducing the frequency of forgotten passwords, SSO implementation lowers the amount of support resources needed to handle password reset requests.
Boost your security stance
SSO offers strong access control to all kinds of data and makes user access audits easier by reducing the number of passwords per user. This helps organizations adhere to data security standards while lowering the risk of security events that target passwords.
Improve the client experience
SSO is used by cloud application providers to offer end users a smooth credential management and login process. Users can still safely access the data and applications they require to perform their daily tasks while managing fewer passwords.
How does SSO operate?
SSO creates trust between an external service provider, sometimes referred to as an identity provider (IdP), and the application or service. A centralized SSO service and the application go through a number of communication, validation, and authentication processes to accomplish this. The following lists the key elements of SSO solutions.
Service SSO
When a user logs in, applications rely on a central service called an SSO service. Applications that receive requests for access from unauthenticated users are redirected to the SSO service. After authenticating, the service returns the user to the initial application. Usually, a specialized SSO policy server powers the service.
SSO token
A digital file containing user-identifying data, like a username or email address, is called an SSO token. The application authenticates the user by exchanging an SSO token with the SSO service when the user requests access.
SSO procedure
The following is the SSO procedure:
- An application creates an SSO token and submits an authentication request to the SSO service when a user logs in.
- If the user has already been authenticated in the system, the service verifies it. If so, it provides the program with an authentication-confirmed response to allow the user access.
- The SSO service asks the user for their username and password and reroutes them to a central login system if they do not have a validated credential.
- After receiving the application, the service validates credentials and responds positively.
- If not, the user must re-enter their credentials and receive an error message. After multiple failed login attempts, the service may block users for a while.
Types of SSO
SSO solutions evaluate and authenticate user credentials using a variety of standards and protocols.
SAML
Applications exchange authentication data with the SSO service using a protocol or set of rules called SAML, or Security Assertion Markup Language. SAML exchanges user identifying information using XML, a markup language that is compatible with most browsers. Because SAML-based SSO services eliminate the need for apps to save user credentials on their system, they offer increased security and flexibility.
OAuth
Applications can safely obtain user data from other websites without providing the password with an open standard called OAuth, or Open Authorization. Applications utilize OAuth to obtain user permission to access password-protected data rather than asking for user passwords. Through Application Programming Interfaces, OAuth builds trust between apps, enabling them to make and receive authentication requests within a predetermined framework.
OIDC
Using a single set of login credentials to visit various websites is possible using OpenID. It enables the service provider to take on the responsibility of user credential authentication. Web applications utilize OIDC to seek more information and verify the user’s identity rather than sending an authentication token to a third-party identity service.
Kerberos
Two or more parties can mutually confirm their identities on a network using Kerberos, a ticket-based authentication mechanism. To stop unwanted access to identification data sent between the server, clients, and Key Distribution Centre, it employs security cryptography.