What type of authentication is recommended for Application Links?

• A. Saml
• B. Basic
• C. NTLM
• D. OAuth

Answer: (D)

When connecting two applications via an Application Link, you want a method that lets one app access another without sharing user credentials. OAuth provides token-based, delegated access designed for app-to-app communication, so the consuming app can act on behalf of a user (or itself) with only the permissions it needs. This keeps credentials secure, supports revocation and scoping, and works across different systems.

SAML is aimed at user single sign-on, not machine-to-machine authorization between apps. Basic authentication would expose a username and password with every request, which is insecure and hard to manage at scale. NTLM is a Windows-specific authentication protocol and isn’t suitable for the cross-platform, service-to-service access typical of Application Links. Therefore, OAuth is the best-fit choice for Application Links.