Patent ID: 8332912

Claim:
A server for managing the authentication of clients that are subscribers of a home domain within which the server is located, the server comprising a processor and a non-transitory memory for storing computer program instructions, wherein when the processor executes the computer program instructions, the server is caused to: determine whether a client that is attached to a visited domain is to be authenticated by the home domain or by said visited domain, wherein the server is configured to select the visited domain to authenticate the client when security procedures utilized in an access network of the visited domain provide the server with a level of trust in the visited domain's security capabilities, and the server is configured to select the home domain to authenticate the client when the security procedures utilized in the access network of the visited domain do not provide the server with the level of trust; and send a message to the visited domain instructing the visited domain to either send authentication information of the client to the server for authentication in the home domain or perform an authentication in the visited domain, depending on a result of the determination; wherein when the client is to be authenticated by the home domain, the server is caused to authenticate the client and to signal the result to the visited domain; and wherein, in the case of a previously authenticated client, when the server receives a request from a visited network to transfer the authentication decision from one domain to another, the server is caused to make a further determination as to whether the previously authenticated client is to be authenticated by the home domain or by the visited domain, and to notify the visited network accordingly.