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SSH Two-Factor Authentication

1 post · Sep 2019

What this trail covers

SSH access is secured with two-factor authentication, requiring both a public key and a time-based one-time password (TOTP) generated by an authenticator app. This enhances security by adding an extra layer of verification beyond traditional password or key-based authentication, mitigating risks from compromised credentials or brute-force attacks. The implementation involves configuring PAM modules and SSH server settings to prompt for the TOTP during login.

All IBM trails
  1. Two-factor authentication for SSHThis post details the implementation of two-factor authentication (2FA) for SSH access using `libpam-google-authenticator` on Debian-based systems. It covers installing the authenticator, configuring PAM (`/etc/pam.d/sshd`) and `sshd_config` for public key and keyboard-interactive authentication, and automating the setup with command-line options. The post emphasizes the security benefits of adding an extra layer of authentication beyond passwords and public keys, and provides guidance on using automation tools like Chef or Ansible for configuration.