Glossary / Authentication
What is authentication?
Authentication is how an app checks who someone is before letting them in, for example with a password, a code sent by email, or "Sign in with Google".
Authentication answers "who are you?". Its partner, authorization, answers "what are you allowed to do?". Logging in is authentication; an admin seeing a page a regular user cannot is authorization.
Common methods are email and password, magic links or one-time codes sent by email, sign-in with an existing account such as Google or Apple, and a second step such as an authenticator app.
Getting it right means storing passwords safely, protecting against repeated guessing, expiring sessions, and checking on the server that each request comes from a signed-in user who is allowed to make it.
In Mythex, the agent builds login for your app's users with your own database or an auth provider you choose; there is no built-in managed sign-in service.
Questions
What is the difference between authentication and authorization?
Authentication checks who you are. Authorization decides what you can see and do once you are in.
Should I build my own login or use a provider?
Providers handle hard parts such as password resets, social sign-in and security updates for you. Building your own gives full control but more responsibility. Either can work if done carefully.