Re: How to authentificate an user via telephon?

["Muhammad Naseer Bhatti" <naseer () digitallinx com>]

What my credit card company has done, when you call their help/support desk
for any assistance, they first authenticate you. They do it by letting you
enter your secret pincode into the system. The computer authenticates the
code and thus you are authenticated. Then the operator manually fulfills
your request. I think this may work out for you as well.


Naseer


----- Original Message -----
From: "Brad Arlt" <arlt () cpsc ucalgary ca>
To: "Robert Sieber" <rsieber () web de>
Cc: <security-basics () lists securityfocus com>
Sent: Wednesday, December 04, 2002 10:00 PM
Subject: Re: How to authentificate an user via telephon?


> On Tue, Dec 03, 2002 at 07:50:10PM +0100, Robert Sieber wrote:
> > Hello colleauges,
> >
> > imaging the following situation:
> >
> > User calls the helpdesk to reset/alter some kind
> > of account-password (NT, RAS, PKI-PIN ...) and you
> > has to determin wheter the user is the correct
> > (owner of the account) user. What would you do
> > to authentificate the users identity?
> >
> > What are good methodes to do this? It should be
> > easy for the user but secure for the administration.
>
> You could have a passphrase book, and tell the user, "Your password
> has been set to the next passphrase".
>
> Some places that don't *really* care about security do the password
> for when you call the support desk.  This is usually a pet's name,
> birthday, or otherwise easily remembered crappy password.
>
> This just leaves you with an account that has two passwords, one of
> which is never going to change *and* is very likely the worst password
> one would ever want to pick.
>
> If they ask you to reset only one of the passwords, then they still
> know the rest.  They could provide authentication on another service
> to alter their password on the requested service.
>
> Our "easy for the user" is they show up at the help desk with their
> University ID (I work for a University).  A pain in the butt for folks
> out of town, but oh well.  The "I am really who I say I am" identity
> claim over the phone, just doesn't work...  Not even if "I *Really* am
> who I say I am".
>
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
>    __o Bradley Arlt Security Team Lead
>  _ \<_ arlt () cpsc ucalgary ca University Of Calgary
> (_)/(_) I should be biking right now. Computer Science