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Sidewinder G2 6.1.1 Administration Guide - Glossary of Technical ...

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Administrator authentication<br />

Authentication overview<br />

When you log in to the <strong>Sidewinder</strong> <strong>G2</strong>, you are authenticated using<br />

either standard UNIX password authentication or a stronger form <strong>of</strong><br />

authentication, such as SafeWord PremierAccess. If standard UNIX<br />

password authentication is used, the password you provide is<br />

maintained in the user database, and the <strong>Sidewinder</strong> <strong>G2</strong> checks the<br />

database to validate your password. Dynamic passwords, called<br />

passcodes, or challenge/response information generated for stronger<br />

authentication methods are not stored on the <strong>Sidewinder</strong> <strong>G2</strong>. Instead,<br />

they are located on the associated authentication server. (Strong<br />

authentication is described in the next section.) The default<br />

administrator authentication method is configured in the Firewall<br />

Accounts window. For information on configuring the default<br />

administrator authentication method, see “Setting up and maintaining<br />

administrator accounts” on page 3-5.<br />

Administrators use Telnet or SSH to access a <strong>Sidewinder</strong> <strong>G2</strong> from an<br />

Admin Console. By default, standard UNIX password authentication is<br />

used to validate this type <strong>of</strong> remote log in attempt.<br />

Note: Secure Computing recommends using a strong authentication method for logon<br />

attempts from a remote UNIX server.<br />

Weak versus strong authentication<br />

Secure Computing uses the terms “weak” and “strong” when referring<br />

to the level <strong>of</strong> security provided by an authentication method. The<br />

differences are discussed in the following section.<br />

Weak authentication<br />

A weak authentication method merely requires a user to enter the<br />

same password each time he or she logs on. The “standard” UNIX<br />

password process is considered to be a weak authentication method.<br />

If someone “sniffs” the password <strong>of</strong>f the phone line or network as it is<br />

transmitted, they can conceivably use that password to break into the<br />

system. Because your internal network is thought to be “trusted,” this<br />

type <strong>of</strong> authentication is generally used for authenticating internal-toexternal<br />

proxy connections.<br />

Setting Up Authentication 9-3

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