Security Kitchen. A SUSE Podcast
Oct 23, 2026 · 1 hr 7 min · 9 segments
Welcome guests to today's amazing meal, where we will be taste-testing all things password-related! Join us to uncover the secrets of that which helps us keep our secrets! \- Appetizer: apples vs…
Authentication is the process that allows verification of a user's identity.
It is the process that will let a user prove that they truly are who they claim to be.
There are many ways that this can be done in our vast, always expanding computing world, and the most well-known method is via the use of passwords.
Your password is supposed to be a secret that only you know and are aware of.
Therefore, you are the only person, in theory, capable of providing it when it is requested.
If an incorrect password is presented, then it likely means that the person presenting it is not you, as they are unaware of the secret group of characters that identifies you.
Unfortunately, in the world we live in today, passwords by themselves are not sufficient to authenticate a person, and many other methods are now used to complement this method, which is what we call multi-factor authentication.
With MFA, not only do you use a password to prove your identity, but you can also use a security QR token, which identifies you via something you own.
The authenticating system sends a code to your cell phone, for example, which is supposed to belong to you and only you.
Biometrics, which identifies you via something you are, your fingerprint is unique after all, so is your iris if you think about an eye scan.
Etc, etc.
Authentication is the process where you prove you are you, where you prove that you are the user that loves apples and doesn't really like oranges.
A truly beautiful way to show how everyone is unique and special in their own way.
Anyway, authentication is the first barrier, the first frontier that allows a user to gain access to a specific resource.
Without it, one is basically stating that anyone is allowed entrance, and if anyone can come in, then they can basically do whatever they want.
There is no control.
There is no access control.
That being said, though, authentication by itself is not enough.
You allowed someone inside the pantry.
Are you actually letting them do whatever they want once they are inside? Or are you going to possibly restrict them based on who they are, which was just defined? Think about it.
Diners should have no access to the pantry, so they don't even pass our first authentication barrier because they shouldn't get in anyway.
However, cooks, people who clean the pantry and people who stock the pantry, should be able to access it.
But each one of these, quote, types of people, end quote, should be allowed access to different types of things inside the pantry.
A person whose main goal is to stock the pantry should only be authorized to leave the fruits in the shelves, while a cook might only be authorized to take them from the shelves whenever they are cooking.
Wait a second.
Authentication is the process that allows verification of a user's identity.
It is the process that will let a user prove that they truly are who they claim to be.
There are many ways that this can be done in our vast, always expanding computing world, and the most well-known method is via the use of passwords.
Your password is supposed to be a secret that only you know and are aware of.
Therefore, you are the only person, in theory, capable of providing it when it is requested.
If an incorrect password is presented, then it likely means that the person presenting it is not you, as they are unaware of the secret group of characters that identifies you.
Unfortunately, in the world we live in today, passwords by themselves are not sufficient to authenticate a person, and many other methods are now used to complement this method, which is what we call multi-factor authentication.
With MFA, not only do you use a password to prove your identity, but you can also use a security QR token, which identifies you via something you own.
The authenticating system sends a code to your cell phone, for example, which is supposed to belong to you and only you.
Biometrics, which identifies you via something you are, your fingerprint is unique after all, so is your iris if you think about an eye scan.
Etc, etc.
Authentication is the process where you prove you are you, where you prove that you are the user that loves apples and doesn't really like oranges.
A truly beautiful way to show how everyone is unique and special in their own way.
Anyway, authentication is the first barrier, the first frontier that allows a user to gain access to a specific resource.
Without it, one is basically stating that anyone is allowed entrance, and if anyone can come in, then they can basically do whatever they want.
There is no control.
There is no access control.
That being said, though, authentication by itself is not enough.
You allowed someone inside the pantry.
Are you actually letting them do whatever they want once they are inside? Or are you going to possibly restrict them based on who they are, which was just defined? Think about it.
Diners should have no access to the pantry, so they don't even pass our first authentication barrier because they shouldn't get in anyway.
However, cooks, people who clean the pantry and people who stock the pantry, should be able to access it.
But each one of these, quote, types of people, end quote, should be allowed access to different types of things inside the pantry.
A person whose main goal is to stock the pantry should only be authorized to leave the fruits in the shelves, while a cook might only be authorized to take them from the shelves whenever they are cooking.
Wait a second.
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