Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) is an XML-based open standard for exchanging authentication and authorization data between identity providers (IdPs) and service providers (SPs). It enables single sign-on (SSO) functionality, allowing users to access multiple applications and services with a single set of credentials.
Key components and concepts of Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) include:
- Assertions: Assertions are XML documents containing statements about a user’s authentication and authorization status. There are three types of assertions in SAML:
- Authentication Assertion: Indicates that a user has been authenticated by the identity provider.
- Attribute Assertion: Contains information about the user’s attributes (e.g., name, email address, roles).
- Authorization Decision Assertion: Specifies whether the user is authorized to access a specific resource or perform a particular action.
- Identity Provider (IdP): The identity provider is responsible for authenticating users and issuing SAML assertions. It maintains user identities and credentials, verifies user credentials during the authentication process, and generates assertions containing information about the user’s authentication status and attributes.
- Service Provider (SP): The service provider consumes SAML assertions provided by the identity provider to grant users access to protected resources or services. It relies on the assertions to make access control decisions and enforce security policies based on the user’s authentication and authorization status.
- Single Sign-On (SSO): SAML enables single sign-on functionality, allowing users to authenticate once with the identity provider and access multiple service providers without needing to re-enter their credentials. This enhances user convenience, improves security, and simplifies access management for users and administrators.
- Bindings: SAML defines different bindings for transmitting assertions between identity providers and service providers over different communication protocols. Common bindings include the HTTP POST binding, HTTP Redirect binding, and SOAP binding.
- Profiles: SAML profiles define standard protocols and workflows for specific SAML use cases, such as web browser SSO, single logout, attribute exchange, and identity federation. Each profile specifies the message formats, communication protocols, and security requirements for implementing SAML-based solutions.
- Metadata: SAML metadata contains configuration information about identity providers, service providers, and trust relationships between them. It includes details such as entity IDs, endpoints, public keys, certificates, and supported SAML profiles, allowing identity providers and service providers to discover and establish trust with each other dynamically.
Overall, Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) provides a standardized framework for implementing secure and interoperable identity federation solutions, enabling organizations to achieve seamless SSO, identity federation, and access management across heterogeneous IT environments, cloud services, and web applications while maintaining control over user authentication and authorization processes.