Patent attributes
A multi-factor authentication scheme uses an MFA authentication service and a browser extensionless phish-proof method to facilitate an MFA workflow. Phish-proof MFA verifies that the browser the user is in front of is actually visiting the authentic (real) site and not a phished site. This achieved by only allowing MFA to be initiated from a user trusted browser by verifying its authenticity through a signing operation using a key only it possesses, and then also verifying that the verified browser is visiting the authentic site. In a preferred embodiment, this latter check is carried out using an iframe postMessage owning domain check. In a variant embodiment, the browser is verified to be visiting the authentic site through an origin header check. By using the iframe-based or ORIGIN header-based check, the solution does not require a physical security key (such as a USB authenticator) or any browser extension or plug-in.
