NestJS Authentication Overview
Get an introduction to NestJS authentication.
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Authentication is the first line of defense against unauthorized access. It ensures that only legitimate users or services can interact with a system or access its resources, thereby protecting sensitive data and functionality from unauthorized access.
In this lesson, we’ll provide an overview of authentication and how it’s implemented in NestJS.
Understanding authentication
Authentication is the process of verifying the identity of a user, system, or entity in order to ensure that they are who they claim to be before granting them access to a specific resource or service. It’s like presenting a valid ticket before boarding a plane.
A very commonly used authentication is username and password authentication. Consider a scenario where we have a personal email account.
In the illustration above, a user attempts to log in to an email account. The user must provide the email address and password. This is a typical example of authentication.
User identity verification: The user enters the email address (the claimed identity) and the password (the claimed proof of identity).
Server validation: The email server checks the provided email address and password against the authentication system.
Access granting or denial: If the email server confirms that the email address and password are valid, it grants access to the email account. If not, it denies access.
This process ensures that only the rightful owner of the email account can access it.
Authentication is the gatekeeper determining who can access valuable digital assets, making it a fundamental element of cybersecurity and data protection.
Authorization
While authentication verifies identity, authorization dictates what actions or data a user can access post-verification. Think of it as ...