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What is Certificate-Based Authentication?

Did you know that lost or stolen login credentials cause the overwhelming majority of cyberattacks?  As long as criminals have your username and password, they have easy access to your network. Well, that’s at least the case if your organization doesn’t use certificate-based authentication.

Certificate-based authentication (CBA) is an authentication method that validates a user’s or device’s identity through a unique digital certificate. Certificate based authentication is more secure than passwords in several ways.

Think of digital certificates like a digital passport – they include identification details, public key information, and a digital signature, all of which work together to assert a user’s or device’s identity.  Unlike traditional password-based logins, certificate-based authentication provides users access to a network or application without the hassle of PINs and other login prompts. Instead, this authentication method leverages PKI cryptographic technologies and streamlined processes to simplify the authentication process.

Before we dive into the details about certificate authentication, let’s cover the basics of PKI.

What is PKI

Public Key Infrastructure, or PKI, is a system of technologies, policies, digital certificates, Certificate Authorities (CAs), and other security tools that secure in-transit data. PKI is the framework that allows you to issue and verify digital certificates, like client certificates, for secure and passwordless authentication. With PKI, you can easily improve your organization’s security posture by verifying user and device identities, encrypting data in transit, and safeguarding messages and data from tampering by malicious actors.

Typically, PKI is used for:

• Securing webpages
• Encrypting files
• Authenticating & encrypting email content
• Authenticating VPN connections

How Does Certificate-Based Authentication Work?

Now that we’ve covered the basics of PKI, let’s cover how certificate-based authentication works.  Certificate authentication relies on PKI certificates, or digital certificates, and cryptographic key pairs. A digital identity certificate contains identity information about a user or device, proving private key ownership. Certificate authentication, in turn, uses the information in the digital certificate combined with the key pair to authenticate that the device is legitimate.

Certificate authentication, often referred to as client authentication, uses a method of authentication called two-way authentication or mutual authentication. Unlike one-way authentication, certificate-based authentication typically requires both the client (user or device) and server to authenticate themselves.  

How Secure is Certificate Authentication?

If you’re wondering about the security of certificate authentication, especially since it allows you to get rid of passwords, the answer may surprise you. While it sounds counterintuitive to say that passwordless login is more secure, it’s regarded as a much more secure alternative to the traditional username-password login.

While passwords can often be guessed or stolen by malicious actors, the device certificates used in certificate-based authentication are almost impossible to fake. Plus, the verification process is fully automated and happens behind the scenes. In fact, certificate-based authentication helps organizations breathe easy, ensuring that only authorized and verified users and devices can access company resources without adding the burden of another PIN or authenticator app.

But there’s a few caveats.  

1. The overall security of certificate authentication is only as powerful as the device certificate’s key strength. That means, the stronger the private key used in the certificate, the more difficult it will be for cybercriminals to break them.
2. Certificate based authentication, when properly setup, is 100% secure as long as the private key is securely stored and remains private.
3. Organizations must carefully consider the trustworthiness and reputation of the Certificate Authority (CA) since they play an important role in the chain of trust. If the CA isn’t trusted and secure, the certificate won’t be either.
4. Properly managing device certificates helps avoid issues like certificate expiration, enables efficient certificate revocation, and establishes policies that prevent unauthorized access to core data.

The Benefits of Certificate Authentication

Although it takes a few added steps to implement certificate-based authentication, you can vastly improve your organization’s posture while making it easier for employees to access corporate resources. And if that hasn’t sold you on the idea of certificate-based authentication, maybe these benefits will:

How Can I Implement Certificate-Based Authentication?

Adding certificate-based authentication to your organization can be an easy process. All you need to do is to grab a device certificate for each device in your digital ecosystem. If you’re dealing with fewer than 50 devices, you might be able to get away with purchasing and installing them on every device. But you’ll have to consider certificate expiration date and certificate lifecycle management, especially if you have more than a few certificates.

DigiCert ONE simplifies certificate lifecycle management, guaranteeing that every digital certificate on every device within your organization never experiences expiration date lapses. With managed PKI, you can maintain an always-on approach, ensuring authorized users have access to what they need, when they need it, all without burdening IT administrators with additional tasks.