Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by talleyrand 3869 days ago
I'm confused. Would this mean I could just grab anybody's public key and log in - as them - to a service that supported this?
2 comments

No, you could just grab anybody's public key to verify their login (when they use their private key).

SSH keys are asymmetric. Think of public keys as locks and private keys as ... well, keys. You hand out copies of the lock but you keep the key to yourself. Anyone can put a lock on a box and know you're the only one who can open it. You tell them what lock to use and then use your key to open it to show them you are who you claim to be.

No, you would need to have their private key.