Trustwave and Cybereason Merge to Form Global MDR Powerhouse for Unparalleled Cybersecurity Value. Learn More

Request a Demo
Trustwave and Cybereason Merge to Form Global MDR Powerhouse for Unparalleled Cybersecurity Value. Learn More

Request a Demo
Services
Managed Detection & Response

Eliminate active threats with 24/7 threat detection, investigation, and response.

Co-Managed SOC (SIEM)

Maximize your SIEM investment, stop alert fatigue, and enhance your team with hybrid security operations support.

Advisory & Diagnostics

Advance your cybersecurity program and get expert guidance where you need it most.

Penetration Testing

Test your physical locations and IT infrastructure to shore up weaknesses before exploitation.

Database Security

Prevent unauthorized access and exceed compliance requirements.

Email Security

Stop email threats others miss and secure your organization against the #1 ransomware attack vector.

Digital Forensics & Incident Response

Prepare for the inevitable with 24/7 global breach response in-region and available on-site.

Firewall & Technology Management

Mitigate risk of a cyberattack with 24/7 incident and health monitoring and the latest threat intelligence.

View All Trustwave Services
Solutions
BY INDUSTRY
BY REGULATION
BY TOPIC
Microsoft Security
Unlock the full power of Microsoft Security
Offensive Security
Solutions to maximize your security ROI
Rapidly Secure New Environments
Security for rapid response situations
Securing the Cloud
Safely navigate and stay protected
Securing the IoT Landscape
Test, monitor and secure network objects
Why Trustwave
About Us
We reduce cyber risk and fortify organizations
Awards and Accolades
Recognition by analysts and media outlets
Trustwave SpiderLabs Team
Global researchers, ethical hackers, and responders
Trustwave Fusion Security Operations Platform
Unprecedented security visibility and control
Trustwave Security Colony
Access to cybersecurity threat protection resources
Partners
Technology Alliance Partners
Key alliances who align and support our ecosystem of security offerings
Trustwave PartnerOne Program
Join forces with Trustwave to protect against the most advance cybersecurity threats
Register
Login
Resources
BLOGS
UPCOMING
MEDIA & ASSETS
NOTICES
HELP
Loading...
Loading...

Trustwave Knowledge Base

Home » Knowledgebase » Legacy Products » Secure Web Gateway » INFO: Transparent authentication on SWG and virtual...

INFO: Transparent authentication on SWG and virtual authentication hostname

Expand / Collapse
Show/Hide Article Tools


This article applies to:

  • SWG 9.x deployed in transparent mode
  • SWG 10.x deployed in transparent mode

Question:

  • What is the purpose of virtual redirection hostname ?

Information:

When SWG is deployed transparently, it can't authenticate clients using the "HTTP 407 Proxy Authentication" method that it uses in explicit mode.Rather, it must use the same type of response that a web server would send "HTTP 401 Unauthorized".

In order to facilitate this, SWG redirects the traffic to a "virtual authentication hostname".

The virtual authentication hostname must resolve to an external IP so that SWG will have a chance to intercept the traffic and issue an authentication challenge.


When the end-user sends the request to the Scanning Server and the Scanning Server is configured to perform user authentication, the Scanning Server responds with an HTTP 302 Redirect, which redirects the user to a virtual host. The virtual host is pre-configured, and its default value is vhost.finjan.com. The virtual host does not have to be a real host; however, the host name of the virtual host must be resolvable by the enduser.






The end-user then closes the session and opens a new session for the virtual host (which does not actually exist). When Vital Security identifies a request for the virtual host, it knows that it must perform user authentication, and it responds to the end-user with HTTP 401 – Authentication Required. 
The end-user then sends the credentials, and the Scanning Server authenticates the end-user against the Active Directory.


It is recommended to change the virtual authentication hostname to vhost (without ".finjan.com") and hosting the DNS entry for vhost on local DNS servers.
For testing/evaluation purposes we have been using public DNS server addresses, i.g. 8.8.8.8 or 8.8.4.4. 

To contact Trustwave about this article or to request support:

Rate this Article:
     

Add Your Comments


Comment submission is disabled for anonymous users.
Please send feedback to Trustwave Technical Support or the Webmaster.


Execution: 0.063. 8 queries. Compression Disabled.
Powered by InstantKB.NET