| About | This blog explains difficult concepts in the Network Access Control world and discusses all things related to security and identity, with emphasis on Cisco’s Identity Services Engine (ISE) How does certificate-based authentication work? The same cryptographic techniques that help ensure secure connections to websites also allow client devices to securely login to corporate networks I find a few universal truths when mentioning certificates to people. Most people I speak with consider them to be a very secure concept almost without fail. However upon mentioning that I want to talk about certificates: that person’s face turns a slightly lighter shade, their eyes get a bit wider, and they have this immediate fight or flight instinct kick in.