SECAI Core · phase 10 of 15
Context-aware authentication
An access control scheme that verifies an object's identity based on various environmental factors, like time, location, and behavior.
The Explain card
- Plain English
- Context-aware authentication verifies identity using environmental signals such as time, location and behaviour, not just credentials. The same password from an unusual place gets a different answer.
- Example
- A developer normally uses the AI platform from the office during work hours. A login with valid credentials from a new country at 2 a.m., followed by bulk downloads of model artefacts, triggers a step-up challenge and alerts the SOC.
- Why it matters
- Stolen API keys and session tokens are valid credentials. Context is often the only thing that separates the real user from the attacker holding their key.
- Hook
- Right password, wrong place, wrong time: still not you.
Where it sits in the deck
Phase 10: Identity, Access, and Cryptographic Foundations
Before examining threats to systems, establish the foundational security primitives — identity, authentication, authorisation, and the cryptography underpinning them.
