You are the Network Administrator for a bank. In addition to the usual security issues, you are concerned that your customers could be the victim of phishing attacks that use fake bank Web sites…

The correct answer is B. Mutual authentication. Mutual authentication protects against phishing because it requires both the server and the client to verify each other's identity - a fake bank site cannot present a valid certificate proving it is the real bank, so the connection fails before any credentials are entered. MAC…

Identity and Access Management (IAM) Architecture

Question

You are the Network Administrator for a bank. In addition to the usual security issues, you are concerned that your customers could be the victim of phishing attacks that use fake bank Web sites. Which of the following would protect against this?

Options

AMAC
BMutual authentication
CThree factor authentication
DTwo factor authentication

How the community answered

(31 responses)

A
3% (1)
B
74% (23)
C
16% (5)
D
6% (2)

Explanation

Mutual authentication protects against phishing because it requires both the server and the client to verify each other's identity - a fake bank site cannot present a valid certificate proving it is the real bank, so the connection fails before any credentials are entered. MAC (Message Authentication Code) verifies data integrity but does nothing to confirm you're talking to the legitimate server. Two-factor and three-factor authentication strengthen user login security, but they still rely on the user first reaching the real site - a convincing fake site can harvest those factors too.

Memory tip: Think "mutual = both sides prove themselves." Phishing exploits one-way trust (you trust the site); mutual authentication closes that gap by making the site prove itself to you.

Topics

#Mutual authentication#Phishing prevention#Server authentication#TLS/SSL

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