What does the deployment of EAP Transport Layer Security (EAP-TLS) require on both the clients and servers?

The deployment of EAP Transport Layer Security (EAP-TLS) requires public key certificates on both clients and servers to establish a secure connection. EAP-TLS is a robust authentication protocol that utilizes a combination of digital certificates and the TLS encryption framework to facilitate secure communications over a network.

This protocol is designed to provide mutual authentication, meaning that both the client and the server must prove their identities to each other. The use of public key certificates enables this process; each party presents its certificate during the authentication phase, which the other party can verify against a trusted certificate authority (CA). This certificate-based approach offers a high level of security as it helps prevent unauthorized access and man-in-the-middle attacks.

In contrast, shared passwords and usernames, authentication tokens, and single sign-on mechanisms are not requirements for EAP-TLS. Passwords can be a weaker form of authentication compared to certificates, leaving systems vulnerable to various attacks. Authentication tokens may provide an additional layer of security, but they are not integral to the functioning of EAP-TLS. Similarly, single sign-on is a user convenience feature that can operate independently of the underlying authentication protocols like EAP-TLS and is not a fundamental requirement for its deployment. Thus, the necessity of public key