authentication

noun

au·​then·​ti·​ca·​tion ə-ˌthen-ti-ˈkā-shən 

ȯ-

plural authentications

: an act, process, or method of showing something (such as an identity, a piece of art, or a financial transaction) to be real, true, or genuine : the act or process of authenticating something

Historically, the authentication of art fell to connoisseurs …

—Colette Bancroft

Encryption and decryption, combined with user authentication, ensure that only intended recipients read the messages.

—Sal Ricciardi

Mostly, notaries have to be adept at the authentication arts. In an era of multiple-personality disorder, cross-dressing, sex-change surgery and bogus IDs, people aren't always who they appear to be. On the notary public rests the responsibility to verify a person's true identity and attest to it.

—Colette Bancroft

Giving users a way to prove that they're being harassed with, say, a screenshot or some other form of authentication could help Twitter catch bad actors, even after they've covered their tracks.

—Issie Lapowsky

—often used before another noun

authentication codes

authentication techniques

authentication keys

Examples of authentication in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This also brings security into the fold with automatic features like cloud authentication and encryption, so developers don’t have to worry about setting up those aspects separately. —Robert Kramer, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024

Use strong authentication: Enable two-factor authentication on all your crypto accounts. —Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 11 Dec. 2024

The company offers two tiers of AI authentication; the most expensive gives a percentage probability of authenticity, whereas the cheaper option simply confirms or denies that a work is genuine. —George Nelson For Artnews, Robb Report, 4 Dec. 2024

Here’s how the company did: Earnings per share: 67 cents adjusted vs. 58 cents expected by LSEG Revenue: $665 million vs. $650 million expected by LSEG Okta helps companies manage employees’ access to applications or devices with features such as single sign-on and multifactor authentication. —Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 3 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

authentic(ate) + -ation

First Known Use

1612, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing authentication

• multifactor authentication
• two-factor authentication