What is the difference between authentication and identification?

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What is the difference between authentication and identification?

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Anonymous 0 Comments

identification: “who are you” – “I am Hatem96”

authentication: “please prove you are a member of the cool club” – “sure, here’s my clubcard/the secret handshake”.

often they overlap. most of time you want to verify (authenticate) the identity of someone. and most of the time someone proving they’re allowed to do something identifies them.

entering your PIN for your credit card in order to “authenticate” a payment is independent of your “identity”. someone who has your pin is allowed to use the card (well, usually the terms and conditions of the bank say otherwise in theory).

meanwhile if you were forced to show your ID as well in order to pay, you’d need to identify to/and authenticate.

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