Articles on: Authenticated testing

Choosing the right authentication method for your web application

To perform authenticated testing, Beagle Security needs to log in to your web application successfully. Choosing the authentication method that matches your application’s login flow helps ensure the testing engine can access authenticated areas and produce accurate results.

Beagle Security supports four authentication methods:

Recorded login
Login
Signup
Third-party login

The sections below can help you determine which method is best suited for your application.

Use Recorded login if your application’s authentication flow involves multiple steps or requires user interactions that cannot be completed using the standard login method.

Examples include:

Multi-step login workflows.
Selecting an option from a dropdown after logging in.
Clicking additional buttons to complete authentication.
Any other actions required before reaching the authenticated area of the application.

To use this method, install the Beagle sequence record extension and record the complete login sequence. During the test, Beagle Security replays the recorded steps to authenticate successfully.

Use the Login authentication method if your application uses a standard login page where users can sign in with a username (or email address) and password.

This method also supports applications that use additional mechanisms such as CAPTCHA, two-factor authentication (2FA), or a magic link login. Simply enable the appropriate options during configuration to match your application’s login flow.

Note: For detailed instructions on configuring these authentication methods, click here.

Choose this method when users log in directly through your application’s own authentication page rather than using a third party identity provider.

Use the Signup authentication method if you do not have an existing test account and your application allows new users to register.

Beagle Security’s AI engine attempts to create a new account automatically and uses that account for authenticated testing.

Use Third-party login if your application authenticates users through an external identity provider instead of its own login page.

Common examples include signing in with:

Google
Microsoft
GitHub
Other supported third-party identity providers

This method should be selected whenever users authenticate through a third-party service rather than directly with your application.

Which authentication method should you choose?

If your application	Use
Requires multiple login steps or additional user interactions	Recorded login
Uses standard username/email and password login	Login
Allows users to create new accounts and you don’t have test credentials	Signup
Uses Google, Microsoft, Github or any other external identity provider for authentication	Third-party

Updated on: 02/07/2026

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