Nonce-Based Authentication Handoff Across Web Apps and Agents
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing authentication systems require repeated user authentication when transitioning between applications and associated components, leading to security risks and user experience friction.
Innovation Solution
A seamless authentication mechanism using a unique nonce embedded in a hyperlink allows a user's authenticated state to be transferred between applications, eliminating the need for re-authentication by creating a handoff link that incorporates the nonce, enabling secure and efficient access to associated components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If repeated user authentication is required when transitioning between applications and components, then security verification is maintained, but user experience deteriorates and authentication friction increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a nonce (number used once) as an intermediary token that carries authentication state between applications. The nonce acts as a mediator that allows the second application to access the user's authentication state from the first application without requiring re-authentication, thus maintaining security while improving user experience.
Solution Approach 2:
The authentication system is designed to be universal across multiple applications and components. The nonce token can be used across different applications (e.g., web applications, mobile applications, desktop applications) to maintain authentication state, making the authentication mechanism multi-functional and application-agnostic.
2Reliability
If repeated login attempts are required across applications, then authentication security is maintained, but the number of credential interception risks increases
Solution Approach 1:
The nonce serves as a secure intermediary that eliminates the need for repeated credential entry. By carrying the authentication state through the hyperlink, the nonce reduces the attack surface for credential interception while maintaining security verification.
Solution Approach 2:
The authentication state is established in advance in the first application and packaged into a nonce token before the user transitions to the second application. This preliminary action ensures that authentication has already been verified before the user interacts with the second application, reducing exposure to interception risks.
3Reliability
If authentication state is not shared between applications, then each application maintains independent security, but unnecessary authentication steps are required
Solution Approach 1:
The nonce token acts as a portable carrier that transfers authentication state between applications. This allows security context to be shared without requiring full re-authentication, reducing the time lost to unnecessary authentication steps while maintaining security integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of discarding authentication state when transitioning between applications, the system recovers and reuses it through the nonce token. The authentication state is recovered from the first application and carried to the second application, eliminating redundant authentication time.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed in some examples are methods, systems, and machine-readable medium that enable a seamless handoff of authentication states between an application of a first service (e.g., a web-application) and a component of the first service that invokes a function within the second application (e.g., such as bots or agents of the first service executing within collaborative platforms of a second service). This may be accomplished through the use of a link that encodes a nonce.