Title: Discussion 11 — Why Does the Authentication Gap Persist?
Course: AIINFRA 300: Agentic AI & the Model Context Protocol (MCP) > Section: Week 11 — MCP Authentication and Tool/Agent Security

💬 Discussion 11 — Why Does the Authentication Gap Persist? (20 pts)

Security audits keep finding that roughly 40% of MCP servers in the wild still require no authentication at all, even after multiple rounds of public reporting on the risks. Given what you now know about OAuth 2.1, PKCE, and the confused-deputy problem, what incentive structure — or lack of one — do you think is driving that gap? Consider in your post: Who bears the cost when an unauthenticated server is exploited versus who bears the cost of implementing auth correctly? Is this a tooling/ergonomics problem (auth is genuinely harder to set up than it should be), an awareness problem, an economic one, or some mix? What would actually move that 40% number down — better defaults in MCP SDKs, marketplace/registry gatekeeping, legal liability, something else? Post your initial response (200+ words), then respond to at least two classmates, engaging directly with their reasoning (agree, push back, or extend with a new angle).