diff --git a/src/main/java/org/opensearch/security/auth/BackendRegistry.java b/src/main/java/org/opensearch/security/auth/BackendRegistry.java
index 54816f8277..4e91aa542d 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/opensearch/security/auth/BackendRegistry.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/opensearch/security/auth/BackendRegistry.java
@@ -437,12 +437,12 @@ public boolean authenticate(final SecurityRequestChannel request) {
      * Checks if incoming auth request is from an anonymous user
      * Defaults all requests to yes, to allow anonymous authentication to succeed
      * @param params the query parameters passed in this request
-     * @return false only if an explicit `auth_request_type` param is supplied and its value is not anonymous,
+     * @return false only if an explicit `auth_type` param is supplied and its value is not anonymous,
      * otherwise returns true
      */
     private boolean isRequestForAnonymousLogin(Map<String, String> params) {
-        if (params.containsKey("auth_request_type")) {
-            return params.get("auth_request_type").equals("anonymous");
+        if (params.containsKey("auth_type")) {
+            return params.get("auth_type").equals("anonymous");
         }
         return true;
     }