basic authentication vs modern authentication

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Modern authentication brings Active Directory Authentication Library -based sign-in to Office client apps across platforms. Now, let me take this time to further break down how Modern Authentication works. Modern Authentication is a more stable and secure way to access data in Microsoft 365. Many technologies, such as accessing Office 365 email via a web browser, have already transitioned to modern authentication. The chart below shows the availability of Modern Authentication … In essence, it is a programmatic method of authentication that developers create to mitigate the downside of basic auth. Anyone who has managed Exchange Online, or really any Microsoft product since the late 2000s knows that trying to do it without PowerShell is like trying to do it with one hand tied behind your back. Companies now have to prepare for the… Modern Authentication is not only far more secure than Basic Authentication but also more user-friendly and makes the life of the administrator easier. July 8, 2020 Modern Authentication uses tokens provided by an identity provider (for example, Microsoft), instead of the actual password of the user’s account (such as their Microsoft account). OAuth tokens have limited usable lifetime and are specific to the applications they are issued for. When a client (your browser) connects to a web server, it sends a “WWW-Authenticate: Basic” message in the HTTP header. Modern authentication is a web-based sign-in which supports rich multi-factor authentication. While Outlook 2013 does support Modern Authentication, it is not enabled by default, and there are several registry keys that need to be set in order to allow the client to use it. Enabling Modern Authentication for your Office 365 tenant gives that tenant the ability to issue and validate authentication and refresh tokens (OAuth2.0 tokens) for thick clients like Outlook. Microsoft have announced that they will retire the Basic Authentication method from Office 365 Exchange Online and make Modern Authentication method the standard way of authenticating going forward.There are continues updates in the M365 Admin Center messages and what admins need to do to prepare for the change. Keep in mind that this setting does NOT prevent Basic Authentication from being used. We noticed that despite modern authentication being turned on for almost a year. I have also found that OAuth2.0 has been supported since iOS 12 which part of Microsoft's Modern Authentication. PowerShell, like Outlook or any other client, needs to authenticate in order to function, and the old method of connecting to Exchange Online via PowerShell used Basic Authentication. Disabling Basic Authentication and requiring Modern Authentication with MFA is one of the best things you can do to improve the security of data in your tenant, and that has to be a good thing. MailStore Server and the SPE support Modern Authentication through OAuth2 and OpenID Connect since version 13 , which significantly enhances MailStore’s integration in the cloud-based environments of Microsoft 365 and Google G Suite. However, the client machine uses Modern auth for authentication, but it requires WinRM Basic Auth to transport modern auth token. If the server refuses a modern authentication connection, then basic authentication is used. First, the authentication header is sent with each request, so the opportunity to capture credentials is practically unlimited. is already using modern auth. Modern authentication is attempted first. Modern Authentication is not a single authentication method, but instead a category of several different protocols that aim to enhance the security posture of cloud-based resources. While this would be a supported scenario (EWS using Modern Authentication to connect to Exchange Online) it is recommended to transition applications to the Microsoft Graph API because Microsoft is no longer releasing feature updates to EWS and are focusing all their efforts on Graph. Basic Authentication requests only a username and password and is not compatible with two-step login. Modern Authentication was introduced to Exchange Online around four years ago and has been the default for clients such as Outlook 2016 since launch, and is used by the wider Office suite, including Outlook Mobile, Microsoft Teams and OneDrive for Business. These scripts use Basic Authentication but as Microsoft has announced, this will be no longer available to us as of second half 2021. the swimming pool is off limits after 9pm). Basic authentication, or “basic auth” is formally defined in the Hypertext Transfer Protocol standard, RFC 1945. ➡ Read our guide to Modern Authentication. Just be aware this switch affects all … Below is an example of Basic Authentication: Modern Authentication is built with additional security factors. The drawback to disabling Modern Authentication is that Exchange clients will then use Basic Authentication to access Exchange mailboxes. Modern authentication in Exchange Online provides you with various ways to increase your organization’s security with features like conditional access and multi-factor authentication (MFA). If it looks like this: Then you are using Modern Authentication. This enables sign-in features such as Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), SAML-based third-party Identity Providers with Office client applications, smart card and certificate-based authentication, and it removes the need for Outlook to use the basic authentication protocol. That can be checked with a simple PowerShell command. For more more information on Basic Authentication visit HTTP Authentication Methods in Windows. Using an authentication policy, you can restrict Basic Authentication from Exchange Online either on a per-user basis or set it as the default for the entire organization. With Basic Authentication, the Exchange service account is granted access to relevant mailboxes using the Application Impersonation role. Modern Authentication brings Active Directory Authentication Library (ADAL)-based sign-in to Office client apps across platforms. In essence, you are simply enabling another authentication provider -- it is not directly tied to MFA. Basic Authentication relies on sending usernames and passwords -- often stored on or saved to the device -- with every request, increasing risk of attackers capturing users' credentials, particularly if not TLS protected. For more information, visit our Privacy Policy page. Enhance Security and Lower Maintenance with the Nylas APIs 4. https://www.kraftkennedy.com/modern-authentication-vs-basic-authentication Basic authentication vs modern authentication. Easy logic dictates that if you are still on Office 2010, and are planning on moving to Exchange Online, you first need to upgrade your Office applications to a more modern version. Other methods, such as accessing Office 365 via the desktop Outlook application, are in process. So, what is the difference on these two ways of user authentication for Exchange Online? Exchange Online Modern Authentication ensures a more secure and reliable way than Basic Auth. If WinRM Basic Auth disabled on the client machine, you can access 9 EXO* cmdlets, but you can’t access older RPS cmdlet. When a user successfully authenticates with Office 365 (Azure AD), they are issued both an Access Token and a Refresh Token. Within the cloud, these tokens help govern access to individual resources. Basic authentication for the protocols EWS, EAS, POP3, IMAP4, and Remote PowerShell was set to be disabled on 13 October 2020. What makes it different from Basic Authentication? Moving forward, to continue using EWS to connect and interact with Exchange Online, developers must write their applications to support OAuth 2.0 – also known as Modern Authentication. The purpose of this guide is to help administrators understand Modern Authentication brings Active Directory Authentication Library (ADAL)-based sign-in to Office client apps across platforms. Switching to Modern Authentication (even if it’s used just for username and password) is more secure than using Basic Auth. Basic Auth vs OAuth: Key Differences 2. To put it in simple terms, basic authentication requires … While the basic authentication (in Exchange 2016, but similar in Outlook 2010) looks like: Another way to identify Modern Authentication is to use the connection status in Outlook: When you see ‘Bearer’ (coming from OAuth bearer token) Outlook is using Modern Authentication, if you see ‘Clear’ then basic authentication is used by Outlook. The best way to do that is to log into the Azure Active Directory portal and navigate to “Sign-ins”. Tokens are more secure than passwords as they contain specific bits of information, known as claims. 5 min read. Basic authentication VS Modern authentication. The Office client will behave exactly as a Web Browser when authenticating, it will send the Access Token requests directly to the authentication provider instead of sending username and password to the resource, and if you are enabled for MFA, you will get the exact same behavior you get when accessing … We use cookies to improve your experience on our site and enable certain core website functionalities. Modern Authentication is not subject to credential capture and re-use, credentials are not stored on the client device, it ensures users re-authenticate when something about their connection or state changes, and it makes adding MFA simple. With no reporting on which devices are actually using OAUTH vs. The answer to the latter should be “before Microsoft disables Basic Authentication entirely in another year”. Microsoft have announced that they will retire the Basic Authentication method from Office 365 Exchange Online and make Modern Authentication method the standard way of authenticating going forward.There are continues updates in the M365 Admin Center messages and what admins need to do to prepare for the change. For this reason, Basic Auth needed to be combined with SSL to encrypt the headers (Remember the adage: NEVER authenticate to a website that is not SSL protected) and protect the user’s credentials. Although the forced switch from basic authentication to more modern security measures might be troublesome, it is a welcome change. Once you have eliminated Basic Authentication from your landscape and have verified there are no longer any clients attempting to authenticate with legacy protocols to Exchange Online, you can shut the door permanently and restrict Basic Authentication from your tenant. This has since been changed to the second half of 2021, but when it does happen, if the application attempting to authenticate does not support the modern authentication protocols, you will … Some examples of Modern Authentication protocols are SAML, WS-Federation, and OAuth. In this guide, we’ll discuss exactly how to best support migration from Basic Auth to OAuth, including: 1. Basic Authentication is superseded by Modern Authentication (based on OAuth 2.0). Click on all of the apps listed under “Legacy Authentication Clients”. With Basic Authentication in Exchange Online set to lose support this fall, Microsoft on Tuesday shared details about the transition and highlighted potential hurdles for organizations.. Authentication for internet resources would typically use Basic Authentication, which has the benefit of being very simple. Basic, it’s critical to take a measured approach when implementing. While the user IDs are redacted in the example above, you may notice an interesting piece of information is that the client attempting a connection is Exchange Online PowerShell. This will allow clients to use Modern Authentication and allow you to begin eliminating Basic Authentication. Personally, I can count on one hand the number of times over the last month that I have had to type my password. First, the lowest hanging fruit; if you are using Outlook 2010 you are using Basic Authentication, as support for Modern Authentication did not appear in the Office suite until Office 2013. Exchange Online administrators should start using the EXO V2 PowerShell module, which uses Modern Authentication and can take advantage of additional security mechanisms such as conditional access and MFA. Server refuses modern authentication when the tenant is not enabled. When you turn on modern authentication, Outlook 2013 for Windows or later will require it to sign to Exchange online mailboxes. A few weeks back, my colleague Brian Podolsky wrote a blog post article detailing the deprecation of legacy authentication in favor of modern authentication for Exchange Online. When you unlock the front door of your house, you walk in and have access to everything; all the bedrooms, the kitchen, the bathrooms, and the underused exercise room. In these scenarios, you're prompted for credentials, and Outlook doesn't use Modern Authentication to connect to Office 365. Cause. After you enter your credentials, they're transmitted to Office 365 instead of to a token. With Modern Authentication, the Use Exchange Web Services with full access to all mailboxes permission is granted to the AskCody EWS application as part of the consent flow. Additionally, the entire basis of basic authentication is predicated on a very simplistic and archaic username\password architecture that Microsoft is trying to eliminate. If you have ever used your Facebook or Google account to access other websites or apps, you have already experienced the concept. Tokens are more secure than passwords as they contain specific bits of information, known as claims. Server refuses modern authentication when the tenant … Most implementations of form-based authentication share the following characteristics: 1) They don’t use the formal HTTP authentication techniques (basic or digest). While each are different in their execution, they all aim to move away from the classic username\password method and instead rely on token-based claims. Legacy/basic authentication. Conditional Access allows organization to create rules restricting access based on location or device. Beyond “security!”, why is Microsoft forcing this switch? When you are given a keycard at a hotel, it will allow you to get in the front door, into your room, maybe the VIP lounge, and the underused exercise room. Basic Authentication: Hopefully by now we don’t need to expand upon the virtues of Modern Authentication. These tokens may also contain information about more than just your user account, including details such as the current computer or current location, thus enabling one of Microsoft’s best security tools. Microsoft’s Timeline 3. After logging into PowerShell for Exchange Online (more on this later) run the following: Get-OrganizationConfig | FT Name, OAuth2ClientProfileEnabled. Second, the password will be cached (and possibly permanently stored) within the browser, creating another surface for compromise. Modern authentication is attempted first. You can drill down on the login and review which users/applications are accessing the portal. Modern Authentication (which is OAuth 2.0 token-based auth) has many benefits that help to overcome the issues present in Basic Auth. hbspt.cta.load(7123980, 'ea81e453-69a0-4604-91f3-1ad5102d5b94', {}); .hs-cta-img {max-width: 100%;height: auto;}. These specify additional rules for My question(s): If I move away from Basic Authentication to Modern Authentication with iPhone users, will they still be able to use the native iOS Mail app? Copyright 2021 Kraft Kennedy. Enabled by default for all new tenants since August 1, 2017, Modern Auth is the superior alternative for all users and applications connecting to Office 365. Most important, the keycard can be permanently disabled by the hotel, after you inevitably forget to return it at checkout. Companies now have to prepare for the… What makes it different from Basic Authentication? Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a security mechanism in which individuals are authenticated through more than one required security and validation procedure. Basic Authentication support will end on Oct. 13, 2020 when it's used with various e-mail protocols involved with the Exchange Online service. If you are like me, PowerShell has become the most indispensable tool in your toolkit. The rest of MS Office (Word/Excel etc.) Modern Authentication allows administrators to enable features such as Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), SAML-based third-party Identity Providers with Office client applications, smart card and certificate-based authentication, and it removes the need for Outlook to use the basic authentication … Modern Authentication uses web-based sign via OAuth in allowing full single sign on, and rich multi-factor authentication processes. We previously announced we would begin to disable Basic Auth for five Exchange Online protocols in the second half of 2021. Basic Authentication requests only a username and password and is not compatible with two-step login. But because of the way the keycard was encoded, you cannot access the rooms of other guests, the linen closet, or the employee only areas. MFA can be enabled while you still have basic auth, but if it is enabled, you have to use app passwords for programs that are not using modern auth (Skype and Outlook). All rights reserved, Enterprise Messaging and IT Infrastructure, Microsoft 365 for Legal Deployment Vision, modern authentication for Exchange Online, Troubleshooting Why Windows 10 Enterprise Downgraded to Pro, Lesson Learned: Blocking Removable Storage, Enterprise Messaging and IT Infrastracture. Modern vs. Shortly after that, it sends your login credentials to the server using a mild obfuscation technique called base64 encoding. Please note that if you are still using Office 2013, enabling Modern Authentication won’t get you off the hook regarding an upgrade. Due to the pandemic and the effect it has on priorities and work patterns, we are announcing some important changes to our plan to disable Basic Auth … However, the client machine uses Modern auth for authentication, but it requires WinRM Basic Auth to transport modern auth token. In iOS, the type of authentication used (basic vs. modern) and whether or not the application will automatically begin using Modern Authentication depends on which authentication mechanism the user selects during the initial mailbox configuration. That extensibility is perhaps the most compelling part of this architecture. An apt analogy compares access to one’s home versus a hotel room. I understand that Exchange ActiveSync is part of Basic Authentication. Modern Authentication needs to be enabled within the Exchange Online tenant. For example, an organization might choose not to allow access from certain countries or from personal devices. Using this authentication method Application Impersonation is therefore no longer required … Sign up for our monthly digest of tech updates and happenings. As of October 2020, Office 2013 will no longer be able to connect to Office 365 cloud resources such as Exchange Online and OneDrive for Business. The question here is not “should you restrict Basic Authentication”, but rather “when will you restrict Basic Authentication”. In short, basic/legacy authentication means that the application will send the username and password each time a request is made to Exchange Online. These can include Microsoft resources, or third-party applications linked to the user’s Office 365 identity. If you haven’t turned Modern Authentication on yet we certainly recommend it. Basic authentication. … The best course is generally to do this with a pilot set of users and, assuming that there are no issues, eventually expand it to the entire tenant. Modern Authentication and MFA offers more secure user authentication and authorization. Of these, POP3, IMAP, and Remote PowerShell will all get OAuth support. Basic Authentication is a term used to explain how an application passes the username and password of a user. If it is “False”, you’ll need to run the following command to enable it: Set-OrganizationConfig -OAuth2ClientProfileEnabled $true. The hotel keycard may have other properties as well, such as time-based access to certain areas (e.g. If the resultant output is “True” then congratulations, you are using Modern Authentication. Enabling modern authentication basically will affect only Outlook and Skype. If EWS has Basic Auth disabled, Outlook … Basic Authentication requests only a username and password and is not compatible with two-step login. You might be thinking, “Yeah, but I still need to enter a username and password,” but this requirement may be fading. The Access Token is very short-lived (valid for around 1 hour). However, even when HTTPS is used, there are still a number of vulnerabilities for Basic Auth. Below is an example of Modern Authentication: 2800 University Capitol CentreIowa City, IA 52242, Online Training Videos (LinkedIn Learning). How long are access and refresh tokens valid while using Modern Authentication? So, they can’t be reused. It can, in many scenarios, be an insecure method to handle credentials. Beyond what, why, and when, the pressing question is How, as in “How do we stop using Basic Authentication?” Our goal is therefore to identify and remediate the areas where it’s still used. Legacy authentication refers to protocols that use basic authentication. migrating to Modern Authentication today to make the transition as smooth as possible for your users. Username and password were contained in a single header field, in plain text, base64 encoding. This token has more specific information (in the form of a claim) that specifies what the requestor does and does not have access to. EXO V2 Powershell module to the rescue! Below is an example of Basic Authentication: Modern Authentication is built with additional security factors. Some user’s devices still held on to the Basic authentication profile when transitioning from one phone to the next. The next step is to verify which clients are using Basic Authentication, and to gracefully reconfigure or replace them with applications that support Modern Authentication. As clarified in previous blogs, Outlook depends upon Exchange Web Services (EWS) for core features; therefore, tenants using Basic Auth with Outlook must enable Modern Auth before Basic Auth for EWS is disabled. A username and password ) is a web-based sign-in which supports rich multi-factor Authentication one. Clients that support Modern Authentication is built with additional security measures such as Office. ( more on this later ) run the following command to enable it: Set-OrganizationConfig -OAuth2ClientProfileEnabled True! Visit HTTP Authentication methods in Windows, including: basic authentication vs modern authentication “ security ”... More on this later ) run the following: Get-OrganizationConfig | FT Name, OAuth2ClientProfileEnabled Privacy! These can include Microsoft resources, or third-party applications linked to the latter be... There is more ability to govern access experienced the concept are sent in clear and... Will provide a list of all clients that support Modern Authentication needs to be enabled the. Like me, PowerShell has become the most indispensable tool in your.. Might choose not to allow access from certain countries or from personal devices a security mechanism which! ; } the apps listed under “ legacy Authentication clients ” chart below shows the availability of Authentication! 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Uses only one type of basic authentication vs modern authentication schemes to schemes that are supported by RPC Auth to,... For around 1 hour ), base64 encoding is best to understand a little about What we coming. But as Microsoft has announced, this will basic authentication vs modern authentication a list of clients. A mild obfuscation technique called base64 encoding access and refresh tokens valid while using Modern on!: Hopefully by now we don ’ t turned Modern Authentication in a single header,.
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basic authentication vs modern authentication 2021