Abstract

Virtual classroom systems have recently been introduced to e-learning environments, leading to many authentication challenges, such as unauthorized access to the system, identity spoofing, and privacy violations of data. This paper deals with the issue of obtaining user authentication in the distributed educational systems, wherein the single-factor mechanisms are not adequate. It introduces a new multi-layered authentication mechanism that includes verification of biometrics, fingerprinting of the device, and validation of credentials by the blockchain, which enhances security without compromising usability. The approach is founded on the creation of a hybrid authentication system that includes federated identity management, cryptographic token exchange, and behavioral analytics. A virtual classroom setup was created to test the protocol on the virtual classroom setup, as opposed to the traditional authentication systems, such as password-based and 2 factor authentication. Accuracy of authentication, latency, false acceptance rate (FAR), and false rejection rate (FRR) are performance measures. Based on the experimental results, the proposed protocol can be authenticated with an authentication accuracy of 98.7, which reduces the FAR to 0.9% and FRR to 1.2%, and the average authentication time of the proposed protocol is less than 1.8 seconds and Security Strength Index is 93.5%. This helps to build up the level of security resistance against threats by 35% and minimizes the number of security incidents as a result of unauthorized access by 42%. The findings reveal that a set of different authentication variables combined with decentralized checking systems can go a long way in improving the security in online learning settings. The suggested model in the present study is the right and efficient model to apply in the authentication that can assist in securing the digital learning ecosystems and meet the emerging threats of cybersecurity in digital learning.