Final answer:
The process where both client and server verify each other's identity is called mutual authentication. It is a security protocol used to prevent impersonation attacks and ensure secure communications.
Step-by-step explanation:
The process in which both the client and the server authenticate each other is known as mutual authentication. This ensures that the client is connecting to the legitimate server and that the server is interacting with the legitimate client. It's a security measure used to prevent various types of attacks, including man-in-the-middle attacks where an attacker could impersonate the server or client.
A common example of mutual authentication is found in secure web transactions using SSL/TLS, where a client verifies the server's certificate and the server verifies the client's credentials, which could be passwords, certificates, or some other form of identification.