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Also known as: S-PAP
A proprietary variant of PAP from Shiva Corporation that introduced modest security improvements over plaintext authentication.
DESCRIPTION
Shiva Password Authentication Protocol (S-PAP) was a vendor-specific enhancement to PAP intended to reduce replay risk relative to simple cleartext exchange. It remained weaker than challenge-response approaches like CHAP and did not see widespread standardization. S-PAP is of historical interest and generally replaced by standardized, stronger methods.
ALTERNATIVE DEFINITIONS
Wikipedia
The Shiva Password Authentication Protocol (S-PAP) is a proprietary version of PAP developed by Shiva Corporation.
Identifies S-PAP as proprietary and derivative of PAP.
Wikipedia
Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) is a data link layer (layer 2) communications protocol used to establish a direct connection between two nodes over serial links.
Provides protocol context for where PAP and S-PAP were used.
RELATED TERMS
Point-to-Point Protocol Microsoft Challenge-Handshake Authentication Protocol Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service Virtual Private Network
COMPETING TERMS
Password Authentication Protocol Challenge-Handshake Authentication Protocol
RELATIONS
- Broader: Protocol
KNOWLEDGE AREAS
TARGET AUDIENCE
Cybersecurity Engineer Security Architect IT Manager
EXTERNAL SOURCES
- Wikipedia - Password authentication protocol
- Cisco - Context comparing PAP/CHAP and proprietary variants.
- IETF - PPP base specification for context.
TOP QUESTIONS
Why did Shiva Password Authentication Protocol exist?
Vendors sought incremental security improvements over PAP before standardized methods like CHAP and EAP matured.
Category: Origin
Is Shiva Password Authentication Protocol still used?
It is largely obsolete and replaced by standardized, stronger methods such as CHAP and EAP.
Category: Relevancy
How does S-PAP compare to PAP?
S-PAP introduced basic protection against simple replay but did not achieve robust challenge-response security.
Category: Comparison
What replaced S-PAP in most environments?
CHAP, MS-CHAPv2, and EAP methods like EAP-TLS replaced S-PAP due to stronger security.
Category: Alternatives
What is the biggest risk of using S-PAP today?
Weak protection compared to modern protocols risks credential compromise and replay attacks.
Category: Risks
Where was S-PAP commonly used?
Dial-up and early PPP-based remote access solutions from Shiva-era products.
Category: Example
What is a key misunderstanding about S-PAP?
That it provides security comparable to CHAP; it does not.
Category: Misunderstanding
How should organizations treat S-PAP now?
Disable it and migrate to standardized, modern authentication methods.
Category: BestPractice
What documentation exists for S-PAP?
References are mainly historical vendor docs and PPP overviews; no IETF standard defines S-PAP.
Category: Documentation