Certificate based authentication - KB5014754

Question

Hi,

As per KB5014754, MS confirmed that February 2025 patch will change into full enforcement mode. Creating a registery key value with 1 enable the compatible mode till September 2025. So how those user certificate can fix before this deadline. Will it affect WiFi and vpn authentication? Anyone addressed this issues?

Thanks in advance..

Answer 1

Hello

KB5014754 is part of a series of updates regarding Certificate-based Authentication and security enhancements for Windows, specifically around the use of certificates for authentication in environments like WiFi and VPN. As per the update, Microsoft plans to enforce stronger security measures around certificate-based authentication starting February 2025, which means this change will affect the way certificates are used for authenticating users.

Key Changes in KB5014754:

Full Enforcement Mode: As of February 2025, Microsoft will enforce stronger certificate-based authentication policies, meaning systems that aren’t compatible with these changes will face issues.

Compatibility Mode: By setting a registry key to 1, you can enable a compatibility mode that will allow the systems to continue working as they did before, but only until September 2025. After this date, the compatibility mode will be turned off automatically, and full enforcement mode will apply.

Addressing Your Questions:

How can user certificates be fixed before the September 2025 deadline?

The main concern here is to ensure that all certificates used for authentication meet the new security standards.

Ensure certificates are properly configured: Ensure that your certificates meet the new security requirements (e.g., the key size, signature algorithm, and other related criteria) set by Microsoft in KB5014754.

Check certificate chain and validation: Verify that your certificates are signed by a trusted Certificate Authority (CA) and that they are valid.

Use the proper authentication methods: Make sure that your authentication policies (such as EAP-TLS for WiFi and VPN) are aligned with Microsoft’s recommended configurations for certificate-based authentication.

Testing: Before the enforcement deadline, test your infrastructure thoroughly. This includes making sure that all certificates are valid and configured for the new security standards.

Will this affect WiFi and VPN authentication?

Yes, it could affect both WiFi and VPN authentication if the certificates are not compatible with the new standards. Since many WiFi and VPN solutions rely on certificates for EAP-TLS authentication, any certificate incompatibilities could cause authentication failures.

WiFi Authentication: Ensure that your WiFi infrastructure (such as RADIUS servers) is updated to handle the latest certificate configurations and that all devices in the network are compliant with the new requirements.

VPN Authentication: If your VPN solution uses certificates for client authentication, ensure that the certificates used are up to date and compliant. You may need to update the server’s certificate validation settings as well.

I hope the above information is helpful to you.

Best regards

Runjie Zhai

Answer 2

Hi Runjie,

Thanks for your response.

Can you please let me know if Microsoft released a patch this month to enforce this strong certificate? As I do not see any patch released or information regarding this. Can you please share if any patch is released for this month (February 2025)