Properly protecting a network requires administrators to make numerous decisions about their security. Knowing what protocol or system to implement at what stage is paramount to network safety. With Cybercrime being the most prevalent crime in the US, with a person 20 times more likely to become a victim than suffer a robbery, it’s essential to have the best defense possible. SecureW2 offers a turnkey PKI solution that works with OAuth, Open ID, and SAML to provide a range of authentication security solutions. Learn from one of our customers how we acclimated to their OpenID environment hassle-free.
But with so many different protocols and methods, it’s often difficult to know what to implement. This is certainly true when it comes to OAuth, OpenID Connect, and SAML, each of which has different use cases for the federated process. In this article, we’ll look at the differences between the three to find which one is better for different situations.
What Is Federated Identity Management?
SAML, OpenID, and OAuth all fall under the broader model of Federated Identity Management (FIM). FIM is a tool or set of processes that allow users to access multiple organizations or applications through the same identifier. A common example would be accessing your Youtube channel with your Gmail account.
Under a FIM system, an IDP is responsible for reviewing user credentials, not the application itself. This is what SAML, OpenID, and OAuth have in common. The difference is how the protocols execute the above function.
Authorization vs. Authentication
The primary difference between the three protocols comes down to the principle of authentication vs authorization.
- Authentication is the process of verifying identity.
- Authorization is the process of giving the user permission to access a specific resource or function.
The two are often wrongly used interchangeably; this is especially important to note when comparing the three protocols. OpenID and SAML can be used for authentication, while OAuth is primarily used for authorization.
What is OAuth?
At its core, OAuth provides clients secure access to a server’s resources on behalf of a resource owner.
OAuth allows access tokens to be issued to third-party clients by an authorization server with the approval of the resource owner (i.e a Facebook profile). The third-party can then use the token to access protected resources hosted by the resource server.
If you have ever been asked by an application to give permissions to access your personal data, such as sharing your Facebook or Google contact, you have likely used OAuth.
What is OpenID?
OpenID is a protocol that enables websites or applications to grant access to users by authenticating them through another service or provider.
OpenID allows you to use login credentials from an OpenID provider (Google) to log in to another application (Facebook). For example, if you want to access www.example.com, they can ask you for your Facebook OpenID. If you enter your OpenID, example.com will redirect you to your Facebook to be authenticated. Your identity will be confirmed and provide you access to your account on example.com.
What is SAML?
SAML is a protocol that allows users to log in to multiple applications using a single set of credentials in the work environment. It utilizes XML-based standards to enable you to log in using your corporate IDP identity. This will grant you access to numerous additional applications without having to re-enter your credentials.
Essentially, SAML is the protocol that is used as an SSO for enterprise-level applications, while OAuth is an SSO for consumers.
Simplifying With SecureW2
If you’re struggling to decide which protocol to use between OAuth, OpenID, and SAML, the good news is SecureW2 can support them all!
If your goal is to authenticate users, there is no better way to do it than with X.509 digital certificates. Once a certificate is administered to a user, it cannot be transferred to anyone else, which gives you a high level of assurance that your network is only being accessed by who you want.
Certificates provide a substantial upgrade to network security and user experience as proper usage of certificates can eliminate the threat of Man-in-the-Middle attacks and password-based headaches.
Organizations have historically been hesitant to implement a certificate-based solution because of perceived difficulties with the distribution. SecureW2 gets rid of any potential issues with our #1 rated JoinNow onboarding software that provisions users with certificates in minutes.
Combining any of the protocols above with certificates is a sure-fire way to secure your network. Click here to check out our Certificate Solutions page to see how we can help.
