The 802.1x standard provides an authentication framework for wireless LANs, allowing a user to be authenticated by a central authority. The actual algorithm that is used to determine whether a user is authentic is left open and multiple algorithms are possible. Examples are certificate-based solutions such as EAP-TLS, password-based solutions such as EAP-OTP and EAP-MD5, smart card-based solutions such as EAP-SIM, and hybrids such as EAP-TTLS, which use both certificates and passwords. Some companies offer their own proprietary EAP solution, such as LEAP from Cisco.

802.1x uses an existing protocol, EAP (RFC 2284), which works on Ethernet, token ring, or wireless LANs, for message exchange during the authentication process.