Authentication System

The Challenge

The Long Now Foundation needed a secure authentication system for their member portal. The system required robust security measures while maintaining a smooth user experience for members accessing exclusive content and resources.

Key requirements included secure token management, magic link authentication flows, and proper network isolation for enhanced security.

The Solution

I implemented a serverless authentication system using modern security practices and AWS infrastructure:

• JWT-based authentication with magic link flows for passwordless login
• AWS Lambda functions for serverless backend processing
• PostgreSQL with RDS Proxy for secure database connections
• BetterAuth library integration for authentication flows
• Network isolation architecture (Internet → DMZ → Private)

The architecture ensures both security and scalability while providing a seamless user experience.

Technologies

These technologies were chosen for their security, scalability, and ability to provide a serverless architecture that reduces operational overhead.

Outcome

Delivered a production authentication system that handles member access securely. The system successfully processes authentication requests while maintaining high security standards through proper network isolation and token management.

The serverless architecture provides cost-effective scaling and reduces maintenance overhead for the Long Now Foundation team.