Accepting a new host key

Before accepting the new host keys, the user should use a secure method to verify that the host key corresponds to the actual server. When a Secure Shell server host key is created, a unique fingerprint is also generated. This fingerprint is a human-readable cryptographic hash that can be used to verify the authenticity of the key being presented by the server to the client. Methods for verifying host keys, including using the host key's fingerprint, are discussed on the next page.