An apparatus and method for performing authenticated communications that includes receiving, by a gateway device, a password associated with an application. The gateway device is in communication with a plurality of access control devices associated with the application. Access to each device in a cluster formed by the gateway device and the plurality of access control devices requires a user authentication associated with the password. The gateway device generates a plurality of different matching pairs of salt values and hash values and deletes the password. In addition, the gateway device transmits different sets of mismatched pairs of the salt values and the hash values to at least two devices of the cluster for storage. The user authentication is based on a salt value and a hash value from the plurality of different matching pairs of salt values and hash values stored at two different devices of the cluster.