diff --git a/cake/libs/controller/components/auth/form_authenticate.php b/cake/libs/controller/components/auth/form_authenticate.php
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..324bff557
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cake/libs/controller/components/auth/form_authenticate.php
@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+<?php
+
+class FormAuthenticate {
+
+/**
+ * Settings for this object.
+ *
+ * - `fields` The fields to use to identify a user by.
+ * - `userModel` The model name of the User, defaults to User.
+ * - `scope` Additional conditions to use when looking up and authenticating users,
+ *    i.e. `array('User.is_active' => 1).`
+ *
+ * @var array
+ */
+	public $settings = array(
+		'fields' => array(
+			'username' => 'username',
+			'password' => 'password'
+		),
+		'userModel' => 'User',
+		'scope' => array()
+	);
+
+/**
+ * Constructor
+ *
+ * @param array $settings Array of settings to use.
+ */
+	public function __construct($settings) {
+		$this->settings = Set::merge($this->settings, $settings);
+	}
+
+/**
+ * Authenticates the identity contained in a request.  Will use the `settings.userModel`, and `settings.fields`
+ * to find POST data that is used to find a matching record in the `settings.userModel`.  Will return false if 
+ * there is no post data, either username or password is missing, of if the scope conditions have not been met.
+ *
+ * @param CakeRequest $request The request that contains login information.
+ * @return mixed.  False on login failure.  An array of User data on success.
+ */
+	public function authenticate(CakeRequest $request) {
+		$userModel = $this->settings['userModel'];
+		$fields = $this->settings['fields'];
+		if (empty($request->data[$userModel])) {
+			return false;
+		}
+		if (
+			empty($request->data[$userModel][$fields['username']]) || 
+			empty($request->data[$userModel][$fields['password']])
+		) {
+			return false;
+		}
+		$conditions = array(
+			$userModel . '.' . $fields['username'] => $request->data[$userModel][$fields['username']],
+			$userModel . '.' . $fields['password'] => $request->data[$userModel][$fields['password']],
+		);
+		if (!empty($this->settings['scope'])) {
+			$conditions = array_merge($conditions, $this->settings['scope']);
+		}
+		$result = ClassRegistry::init($userModel)->find('first', array(
+			'conditions' => $conditions,
+			'recursive' => 0
+		));
+		if (empty($result) || empty($result[$userModel])) {
+			return false;
+		}
+		unset($result[$userModel][$fields['password']]);
+		return $result[$userModel];
+	}
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/cake/tests/cases/libs/controller/components/auth/form_authenticate.test.php b/cake/tests/cases/libs/controller/components/auth/form_authenticate.test.php
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..940c973e0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cake/tests/cases/libs/controller/components/auth/form_authenticate.test.php
@@ -0,0 +1,133 @@
+<?php
+
+App::import('Component', 'auth/form_authenticate');
+App::import('Model', 'AppModel');
+App::import('Core', 'CakeRequest');
+App::import('Core', 'Security');
+
+require_once  CAKE_TESTS . 'cases' . DS . 'libs' . DS . 'model' . DS . 'models.php';
+
+/**
+ * Test case for FormAuthentication
+ *
+ * @package cake.test.cases.controller.components.auth
+ */
+class FormAuthenticateTest extends CakeTestCase {
+
+	public $fixtures = array('core.user');
+
+/**
+ * setup
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function setUp() {
+		parent::setUp();
+		$this->auth = new FormAuthenticate(array(
+			'fields' => array('username' => 'user', 'password' => 'password'),
+			'userModel' => 'User'
+		));
+		$this->password = Security::hash('password', null, true);
+		ClassRegistry::init('User')->updateAll(array('password' => '"' . $this->password . '"'));
+	}
+
+/**
+ * test applying settings in the constructor
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function testConstructor() {
+		$object = new FormAuthenticate(array(
+			'userModel' => 'AuthUser',
+			'fields' => array('username' => 'user', 'password' => 'password')
+		));
+		$this->assertEquals('AuthUser', $object->settings['userModel']);
+		$this->assertEquals(array('username' => 'user', 'password' => 'password'), $object->settings['fields']);
+	}
+
+/**
+ * test the authenticate method
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function testAuthenticateNoData() {
+		$request = new CakeRequest('posts/index', false);
+		$request->data = array();
+		$this->assertFalse($this->auth->authenticate($request));
+	}
+
+/**
+ * test the authenticate method
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function testAuthenticateNoUsername() {
+		$request = new CakeRequest('posts/index', false);
+		$request->data = array('User' => array('password' => 'foobar'));
+		$this->assertFalse($this->auth->authenticate($request));
+	}
+
+/**
+ * test the authenticate method
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function testAuthenticateNoPassword() {
+		$request = new CakeRequest('posts/index', false);
+		$request->data = array('User' => array('user' => 'mariano'));
+		$this->assertFalse($this->auth->authenticate($request));
+	}
+
+/**
+ * test the authenticate method
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function testAuthenticateInjection() {
+		$request = new CakeRequest('posts/index', false);
+		$request->data = array(
+			'User' => array(
+				'user' => '> 1',
+				'password' => "' OR 1 = 1"
+		));
+		$this->assertFalse($this->auth->authenticate($request));
+	}
+
+/**
+ * test authenticate sucesss
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function testAuthenticateSuccess() {
+		$request = new CakeRequest('posts/index', false);
+		$request->data = array('User' => array(
+			'user' => 'mariano',
+			'password' => $this->password
+		));
+		$result = $this->auth->authenticate($request);
+		$expected = array(
+			'id' => 1,
+			'user' => 'mariano',
+			'created' => '2007-03-17 01:16:23',
+			'updated' => '2007-03-17 01:18:31'
+		);
+		$this->assertEquals($expected, $result);
+	}
+
+/**
+ * test scope failure.
+ *
+ * @return void
+ */
+	function testAuthenticateScopeFail() {
+		$this->auth->settings['scope'] = array('user' => 'nate');
+		$request = new CakeRequest('posts/index', false);
+		$request->data = array('User' => array(
+			'user' => 'mariano',
+			'password' => $this->password
+		));
+
+		$this->assertFalse($this->auth->authenticate($request));
+	}
+
+}
\ No newline at end of file