Authentication is the process of verifying the identity of a user, device, or system before granting access to protected resources. It's like a bouncer at an exclusive tech conference checking badges to ensure only authorized attendees get in.

How to use it in a sentence

• "We need to implement authentication for our new AI-powered coffee maker app, otherwise any script kiddie could remotely brew a latte and drain our bean reserves."

• "I thought my 'password123' was secure enough, but after seeing all these data breaches in the news, I realized I need to step up my authentication game to keep the hackers at bay."

If you actually want to learn more...

• "Strengthening public key authentication against key theft" by Martin Kleppmann and Conrad Irwin: This paper discusses vulnerabilities in asymmetric key pair authentication and proposes an algorithm to mitigate risks of key compromise. Read the full article.

• "The Basics of Web Application Security" by Cade Cairns and Daniel Somerfield: This article emphasizes the importance of basic security practices in modern web development and the growing recognition of advanced techniques like threat analysis.

• "A Guide to Threat Modelling for Developers" by Jim Gumbley: This guide assists teams in adopting threat modeling, a risk-based approach to designing secure systems, by starting simple and evolving the process. Read the full article.

Note: the Developer Dictionary is in Beta. Please direct feedback to skye@statsig.com.