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Authentication & Identity

MCP's flexible authentication requires enterprises to make authentication decisions. The protocol doesn't mandate authentication methods, leaving organizations to balance convenience and security.

Authentication Requirements​

MCP's Design Choice​

The MCP specification intentionally avoids requiring authentication, prioritizing developer adoption over security. The protocol supports OAuth, API keys, and other methods, but implementation requires additional configuration that most deployments skip.

This presents a challenge for enterprises. AI agents can access customer data, financial records, and intellectual property through connections that may have no authentication whatsoever.

OAuth vs. Token Authentication​

When OAuth is Non-Negotiable​

OAuth excels in scenarios requiring individual accountability and regulatory compliance. Enterprises need complete audit trails that trace every action back to specific users for SOC 2 compliance and other regulatory requirements. OAuth provides this attribution automatically.

User-specific data access demands OAuth. Personal productivity tools like email, calendar, and documents require individual authentication because permissions vary by user. A service account can't distinguish between users who should and shouldn't access specific data.

Multi-client enterprise deployments benefit from OAuth's standardization. When ChatGPT, Claude, and Cursor all access the same tools, OAuth provides consistent authentication across platforms with automatic token refresh.

Shared Tokens​

API tokens work better for specific scenarios requiring shared access patterns. Development and testing environments benefit from token simplicity: developers can quickly prototype without OAuth complexity. Service-to-service communication between backend systems often uses tokens for automated workflows without human interaction.

Small internal teams with shared responsibility for tools may prefer tokens over per-user OAuth complexity. However, this approach sacrifices individual attribution and compliance readiness.

Token Lifecycle Management​

Token Management Risk​

Organizations often implement authentication but overlook ongoing token management. Tokens with indefinite lifespans become permanent backdoors when compromised. Organizations using manual token management must establish rotation schedules, coordinate updates across systems, and maintain zero-downtime procedures.

Automatic rotation is built into OAuth deployments. Modern identity providers handle this seamlessly, refreshing tokens before expiration without user intervention.

Token Revocation​

Token revocation is required for employee departures, security incidents, role changes, unauthorized tool usage, and compliance audit findings.

Effective revocation requires centralized control through your identity provider, automated notification to affected systems, comprehensive audit logging, and procedures for replacing legitimate access. Organizations without these capabilities face extended exposure windows during incidents.

Authentication Patterns for Different Use Cases​

Per-User Authentication​

Each individual authenticates to downstream services with their own credentials. This pattern works for personal data that varies by user, regulatory requirements for individual accountability, systems with complex permission models, and audit trails requiring personal attribution.

Sales teams accessing individual CRM data, support agents viewing customer-specific tickets, and analysts accessing data based on their clearance level all benefit from per-user authentication.

Service Account Authentication​

Shared credentials managed centrally work for read-only data sources without user-specific permissions, shared knowledge bases and documentation, internal tools with consistent access patterns, and systems lacking per-user authentication.

Analytics teams accessing shared data warehouses, developers using common documentation systems, and operational dashboards pulling from multiple sources often use service account patterns.

Hybrid Authentication Models​

Mix strategies within one deployment based on data sensitivity and access patterns. Executive dashboards might combine personal email access (OAuth per-user), individual sales data (OAuth per-user), shared reporting data (service account), and public market data (no authentication).