Advanced Authentication and Authorization Patterns

Advanced Authentication and Authorization Patterns

Service meshes enable sophisticated authentication patterns beyond basic mutual TLS. Multi-factor authentication can be implemented at the mesh level, requiring both certificate authentication and JWT tokens. This defense-in-depth approach ensures compromised credentials alone cannot access services.

Delegation and impersonation support complex authorization scenarios. Service meshes can propagate user identity through service chains while allowing controlled delegation. Backend services receive both the original user identity and intermediate service identities, enabling fine-grained authorization decisions based on complete context.

External authorization enables integration with enterprise policy engines. Service meshes can delegate authorization decisions to external services implementing complex business logic. This pattern supports dynamic authorization based on real-time risk assessment, user attributes, or external data sources.