Attribute based access control (ABAC) - Cyberiom
Channel: Cyberiom
Date: 2022-12-28

Attribute-based access control (ABAC) is a type of access control model that uses attributes (such as user roles, group membership, and other characteristics) to determine whether a user should be granted access to a particular resource or perform a specific action.

In ABAC, access to resources is controlled based on the attributes of the user requesting access and the attributes of the resource itself. A set of rules or policies is used to define the conditions under which a user is granted access to a resource, and these rules are evaluated in real-time when a user requests access.

Some examples of attributes that might be used in an ABAC model include:

User attributes: These are characteristics of the user requesting access, such as their role, group membership, location, and other characteristics.

Resource attributes: These are characteristics of the resource being accessed, such as its location, type, sensitivity level, and other characteristics.

Contextual attributes: These are characteristics of the context in which the access request is being made, such as the time of day, the network location, and other factors.

ABAC is a flexible and granular access control model that allows for fine-grained control over access to resources based on a wide range of attributes. It is often used in conjunction with other access control models, such as role-based access control (RBAC) or discretionary access control (DAC).