In a federated network, the service that holds the user account and performs authentication is called what?

In a federated network, the service that holds the user account and performs authentication is called what?

• A. Service Provider (SP)
• B. Relying Party
• C. Identity Provider (IdP)
• D. Authentication Gateway

Answer: (C)

In federated identities, the entity that holds user accounts and actually performs the login is the Identity Provider. The IdP authenticates the user’s credentials and then issues a trusted token or assertion that proves the user’s identity. The service you want to access, often called the Service Provider or Relying Party, trusts that assertion from the IdP to grant access without the user having to log in again to that service. The term Relying Party describes the party that depends on the IdP for authentication, not the one that does the authentication itself. An Authentication Gateway isn’t the standard term for the authentication authority in federation. So the best answer is Identity Provider.

In federated identities, the entity that holds user accounts and actually performs the login is the Identity Provider. The IdP authenticates the user’s credentials and then issues a trusted token or assertion that proves the user’s identity. The service you want to access, often called the Service Provider or Relying Party, trusts that assertion from the IdP to grant access without the user having to log in again to that service. The term Relying Party describes the party that depends on the IdP for authentication, not the one that does the authentication itself. An Authentication Gateway isn’t the standard term for the authentication authority in federation. So the best answer is Identity Provider.