What is the difference between authentication and authorization?
Authentication confirms who a user is, usually with a password, MFA, or SSO. Authorization decides what that authenticated user is allowed to see and do. Security questionnaires often ask about both together as the foundation of access control.
What the buyer is really asking
A broad opener buyers use to get the overall picture. Name your identity provider, explain how sessions work, and describe how the app decides what each user can do. Follow-up questions will dig into each piece.
Other ways buyers ask it
Every one of these wants the same answer:
- “How do you manage user authentication and authorization?”
- “What identity provider do you use?”
- “How are user sessions managed?”
Evidence to have ready
- Identity provider configuration
- Session and token settings
- An architecture note on authorization checks
How Tyrvar answers this
Tyrvar treats every wording above as one question. You write the answer once, attach the evidence, and revisit it when your setup changes. Each buyer gets that approved answer no matter how their questionnaire words it. If you have not answered it yet, Tyrvar flags the question for you and does not make something up. Try it on your own questionnaire.