Pre-Shared Key Authentication (2024)

FAQs

What is a pre-shared key for authentication? ›

The pre-shared key method of authentication enables a remote host to authenticate itself by providing a secret key, which is known to both hosts.

At this point, the plaintext cannot be discovered, and theoretically, the transmission is secured. One of the greatest weaknesses in shared-key authentication is that it provides an attacker with enough information to try to crack the WEP secret key.

A pre-shared key is basically just a shared secret or password that is used to authenticate an individual attempting to join a wireless network (no username or identification or than the key is required).

In the context of WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access), PSK stands for Pre-Shared Key. It is a security mechanism used in WPA to establish a secure connection between a wireless client (such as a laptop, smartphone, or other Wi-Fi-enabled device) and a Wi-Fi access point.

Check the Keychain (Applications > Utilities > Keychain Access). The Pre-Shared Key is usually saved here. Enter "Shared Secret" into the search bar to view a list of all your saved PSKs.

Unavoidably, however, pre-shared keys are held by both parties to the communication, and so can be compromised at one end, without the knowledge of anyone at the other.

Explanation: Passwords are considered to be the weakest form of the authentication mechanism because these password strings can be exposed easily by a dictionary attack.

Examples of shared-key authentication:

SKA is commonly used in Wi-Fi networks, using Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) or Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) with pre-shared keys. Virtual private networks (VPNs). Some VPNs use SKAs to establish secure connections between clients and servers.

When a device attempts to connect to a WPA2-PSK secured network, it must provide the correct pre-shared key. Once the key is authenticated, the device can connect and communicate securely within the network. This process ensures that only authorized devices can access the network and its resources.

'Pre-shared key' means that a passphrase, or shared key, is set up in advance and is required to connect to the wireless network.

Should I change the pre-shared key? ›

As a security precaution, we recommend that you periodically change the pre-shared key.

Phase-shift keying (PSK) is a digital modulation process which conveys data by changing (modulating) the phase of a constant frequency carrier wave. The modulation is accomplished by varying the sine and cosine inputs at a precise time. It is widely used for wireless LANs, RFID and Bluetooth communication.

You can use a pre-shared key (also called a shared secret or PSK) to authenticate the Cloud VPN tunnel to your peer VPN gateway. As a security best practice, we recommend that you generate a strong 32-character pre-shared key.

What Does Wi-Fi Protected Access Pre-Shared Key Mean? Wi-Fi Protected Access Pre-Shared Key or WPA-PSK is a system of encryption used to authenticate users on wireless local area networks. It's typically utilized by telecom companies for end-user access in home local area networks.

Explanation: Shared key authentication is considered a security risk in a WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) primarily because of the fact that it relies on a static, pre-shared encryption key.

Spoofing Login

Such an attack negates one of Kerberos's primary advantages, that passwords are never transmitted in cleartext over a network. While this problem is not restricted to Kerberos environments, the Kerberos protocol makes it difficult to employ the standard countermeasure: one-time passwords.

Drawbacks you may encounter

The most common reason for this can be the lack of a modern phone or any other gadget that would support such a feature. Problems due to loss of access to one of the authentication factors. This can make it difficult to access a personal account and take some time to solve it.