CMU-CS-01-123
Computer Science Department
School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University



CMU-CS-01-123

Authentication Confidences

Gregory R. Ganger

April 2001

CMU-CS-01-123.ps
CMU-CS-01-123.pdf


Keywords: Security, authentication, biometric authentication, system access


"Over the Internet, no one knows you're a dog," goes the joke. Yet, in most systems, a password submitted over the Internet gives one the same access rights as one typed at the physical console. We promote an alternate approach to authentication, in which a system fuses observations about a user into a probability (an authentication confidence) that the user is who they claim to be. Relevant observations include password correctness, physical location, activity patterns, and biometric readings. Authentication confidences refine current yes-or-no authentication decisions, allowing systems to cleanly provide partial access rights to authenticated users whose identities are suspect.

8 pages


Return to: SCS Technical Report Collection
School of Computer Science homepage

This page maintained by reports@cs.cmu.edu