Levels of Authentication Required for this project: Windows, Apple Mac OS X, Linux, or Unix with a
Question:
Levels of Authentication Required for this project: Windows, Apple Mac OS X, Linux, or Unix with a web browser In this project you will explore the levels of identification and authentication used by the online merchant web site Amazon.com. Many web sites use sev eral levels of identification and authentication that correspond to various activities and functions that a user might perform on the web site. 1. If you do not have an online account with Amazon.com, set one up now. Log in, then log off. 2. Removeanycookies associated with Amazon.com. In Firefox for Windows, go to Tools >Options > Privacy > Cookies, then search for and remove amazon.com cookies. For Firefox on a MAC, it's slightly different. You have to click Firefox, then Preferences, then click Privacy, then if necessary, click Use custom settings for history, then you will see the Show Cookies button. In IE, go to Tools > Internet Options > Privacy > Sites. In Safari for Windows, go to Edit > Preferences > Security > Show Cookies. For Safari on a MAC, you have to click the Safari button, then Preferences, then click the Privacy tab, then Details button. Note: Browser design over time may mean that the method used to view cookies may have changed. 3. Go to the Amazon.com web site and note how it identifies you. Since you have removed your cookies, you should appear as an anonymous user or first-time visitor to Amazon.com, similar to Figure 2-7. 4. Log in to the Amazon.com web site, and then log out. This will reestablish your userid cookie with the web site. 5. Visit Amazon.com again. This time, Amazon should recognize you and dis play a "Welcome back" message, similar to what is shown in Figure 2-8. 6. Sometime in the future (maybe in a few hours or days), visit Amazon.com again, using the same computer and browser. The site should still recognize you. This time, visit your account settings page or order merchandise. Even though the web site recognizes you, it may ask you to reenter your password, proving your identity through authenti cation, before showing you potentially sensitive information. 7. You will have viewed three different levels of authentication: an anony mous/unknown user, a weakly identified user (through your userid cookie), and a more strongly identified user (through userid and pass word authentication). What mechanisms were used to identify you in this project?