SSH (Secure Shell) is a security protocol that is used to make a secure connection to a server that has the SSH and SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol) protocols installed. SSH encrypts all communications to and from the client and server. MOVEit Automation uses the SSH protocol to transfer files via SFTP.

MOVEit Automation implements Revision 3 (and also supports less-widely used Revisions 4, 5, and 6) of the SFTP draft standard.

MOVEit Automation can authenticate to an SFTP server using user key and password or client keys, or a combination of both.