What is Identity and Access Management (IAM)?

Identity and access management, or IAM, is the security practice that enables the appropriate entities (people or things) to utilize the appropriate resources (applications or data) at the appropriate times. For instance, customers and employees are IAM system users. IAM solutions allow IT managers to verify that users are who they claim to authenticate and that users are only accessing resources and apps they are authorized to use authorization.

Enterprise identity management solutions and access systems help your company manage employee apps without requiring an administrator to log in to every app. With digital transformation, identities are also given to robots, IoT devices, and software components like APIs or microservices. In addition, Software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions and multi-cloud hybrid IT infrastructures make the IAM framework landscape even more challenging.

An Identity access management system is essential to any organization because it places barriers between users and vital enterprise assets. In addition, it helps defend against hacked user credentials and easily cracked passwords, which are frequent network access points for malicious hackers who wish to install ransomware or steal data.

IAM solutions ensure corporate productivity and the smooth operation of digital systems. Employees may conduct business as usual no matter where they are, and centralized management ensures they have access to the resources for their tasks. Additionally, allowing access to consumers, vendors, and suppliers can boost productivity and decrease expenses.

Useful link: Key Business Benefits of Identity and Access Management

What does IAM Mean?

IAM ensures that the appropriate individuals and job functions within your business have access to the resources required to perform their duties. With the help of IAM solutions, your company can manage staff apps without having to log in as an administrator to every app. An identity access management system allows your enterprise to manage different identities, including users, software, and hardware devices.

Why do You Need IAM?

Organizations require IAM architecture to embrace employee productivity and offer online security.

Productivity

Once they are online at your leading IAM portal, your employees don’t need to worry about having the proper password or the correct access level to perform their jobs. Not only does every employee get access to the right suite of tools for their job, but their access is also often managed as a group or role rather than individually, decreasing the workload on your IT pros.

Security

Traditional security regularly has one point of disappointment – the password. If a user’s password gets exposed or, more awful, the email address for their sensitive data recoveries, your company becomes more vulnerable to threat actors. IAM services eliminate potential points of failure and provide tools to support them and spot errors as they happen.

How Does IAM Work?

Identity management solutions often accomplish two things:

1) IAM checks the user’s credentials against a database to authenticate that the user, software, or hardware is who they claim to be. As a result, IAM cloud identity tools are more versatile and secure than traditional username and password systems.

2) Identity access management systems only permit access at the proper level. For instance, IAM technology enables portioned access to specific parts of software, such as editor, viewer, and commenter in a content management system, rather than granting login and password access to a complete software suite.

What Does IAM Do?

IAM solutions offer this core functionality.

Tasks	Services
Single sign on	Thanks to identity and access management solutions with single sign-on (SSO), users can authenticate their identities with one portal rather than numerous resources. In addition, the user no longer needs to remember multiple passwords because the IAM system serves as the identity source truth for the various services available after authentication.
Provisioning users	Provisioning is identifying the tools and access levels (editor, viewer, administrator) needed to access a user. IAM testing tools enable IT departments to provision users by role, department, or other groupings in collaboration with their management.
Authorizing users	Access management tools ensure that users receive the precise type and level of tool access to which they are entitled. Users can also be divided into groups or roles so that many users in a cohort can have the same privileges.
Manage user identities	IAM systems can integrate with one or more other directories and synchronize with them, or they can be the only directory used to add, modify, and delete users. Users who require specific access to a company’s resources can also create new identities with the help of identity and access management solutions.
Authenticating users	IAM configuration verifies a user’s identity by ensuring they are who they claim to be. The current secure authentication standards use adaptive and multi-factor authentication (MFA).
Reporting	To maintain compliance and evaluate security threats, IAM tools create reports following most operations performed on the platform (such as login time, systems access, and type of authentication).

Does IAM Improve Regulatory Compliance?

Laws, rules, and contracts all pertain to security. Data security is strictly regulated by data protection laws such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe, HIPPA, and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the United States. With IAM security, your users and organization may ensure that the most significant standards of security, tracking, and administrative transparency are a given in your daily operations.

What are the Benefits of IAM?

IAM technology can automate creating, capturing, managing, and administrating user identities and associated access rights. The five primary benefits of IAM and are

1) Multi-Factor Security

IAM best practices assist businesses in transitioning from two-factor to three-factor authentication, using features such as iris scanning, fingerprint sensors, and facial recognition.

2) Removing Insecure Passwords

According to surveys, weak passwords, defaults, or stolen accounts for over 80% of data breaches. Identity and access management (IAM) systems enforce the best solutions and prevent users from using default or weak passwords. They also make certain users regularly change their passwords.

3) Advanced Anomaly Tracking

Modern IAM solutions use technologies such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and risk-based authentication to detect and stop anomalous activity. These go beyond simple credential management.

4) Reducing Insider Threats

An increasing number of breaches are caused by insiders. IAM security can prevent malicious insiders from doing further harm by limiting user access to the systems they require to perform their tasks and preventing them from escalating their privileges without monitoring.

5) Productivity Gains

The IAM lifecycle centralizes and automates identity and access management solutions. It establishes automated processes for situations such as new hires and position transitions, which can reduce errors and speed up the processing of access and identity changes.

Useful link: IAM Implementation and Solutions To Emerging ‘IT Security Challenges’

How Do IAM Technologies and Tools Work?

IAM trends and technologies are built to make account setup and user provisioning easy. With a controlled workflow that eliminates errors and the possibility of misuse while enabling automated account fulfillment, these technologies should decrease the time it takes to perform these tasks. In addition, admins should be able to rapidly view and modify changing access roles and permissions with an IAM best practices system.

These systems should balance the efficiency and automation of their operations with the administrative control required to track and modify access rights. Consequently, the central directory requires an access rights system to manage access requests that automatically associates employee job titles and business unit identities with their proper privilege levels.

Let’s look at the most common IAM technologies and tools that today’s companies use.

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IAM Technologies

System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM)
Security Access Markup Language (SAML)
OpenID Connect (OIDC)

System for Cross-Domain Identity Management (SCIM)

SCIM is a standard method for automatically exchanging identification data between two systems. Throughout the authentication process, applications can receive identity management system information from SAML and OIDC. SCIM is used to maintain user information up to date when new users are added to the application or service, user data is updated, or users are removed. SCIM is an essential element of user provisioning in the IAM environment.

Security Access Markup Language (SAML)

A service or application and an identity provider system, such as IAM trends, can communicate authentication and authorization data using the open standard known as SAML. This is the regular process for an IAM best practices to allow a user to log in to an application combined with the IAM platform.

OpenID Connect (OIDC)

With the help of an identity provider, users can log in to their application using the more recent open standard known as OIDC. It is pretty similar to SAML; however, it is based on the OAuth 2.0 standards and transmits data using JSON rather than XML, as SAML does.

IAM Tools

Authentication

Multi-factor authentication
Biometric authentication
Behavioral authentication
Risk-based authentication

Access Management

Single sign-on
Context-aware network access controls
Password management
Pre-shared keys

Administration

Access request and review
Workflow management
Automated provisioning and de-provisioning
Identity lifecycle management
Privileged account management
Segregation of duties

Other IAM Tools Include

OneLogin Trusted Experience Platform
CloudKnox Permissions Management Platform
Ping Identity Intelligent Identity Platform
CyberArk
ForgeRock
Microsoft Azure Active Directory
Okta
SailPoint

Useful link: Top Tools and Security Protocols That Make IAM Successful!

What are the Challenges and Risks of Implementing IAM?

When creating an IAM implementation and continuing maintenance procedures, users must consider five identity and access management challenges and risks. Let’s examine the challenges and risks associated with IAM implementation.

1) User Password Fatigue

Passwords are essential for maintaining and administering any online account because external threats are common. Public, private, and federal sector institutions continue to depend on online accounts to carry out essential business operations. It requires users to create multiple passwords. Users frequently use the same password for several accounts. Therefore, if one is compromised, it is also possible for other accounts to be readily compromised.

2) Multi-Factor Authentication

Although multifactor authentication has some potential benefits, it is not user-friendly. Government employees and contractors must frequently carry a different access card or RSA token to access numerous networks and systems. Some users view using a webcam when using their RSA tokens because it can be difficult to handle. Although frequently used for high-value applications, multifactor authentication is not entirely secure.

3) Cloud Applications

Cloud-based apps have increased significantly, allowing for a connected, worldwide workforce. However, it becomes difficult to determine who has access to information when numerous cloud platforms are running.

4) Managing Access for Remote Work

Accessibility through an internet-connected device is one of the major advantages of cloud applications. However, as there are more apps, there are also more URLs and passwords to monitor, and as mobile device use increases, there are more access points to support and manage. Moreover, with the current IAM trends, IT organizations must enable access across several devices and platforms without sacrificing security.

5) Multiple Applications for Different Administration Models

As cloud applications become simple and less expensive to set up, organizations are embracing more point SaaS solutions every day. These solutions are frequently managed by the respective functional department in a business, in the case of Salesforce.com, the Sales Operations group. This can help IT because it frees up time and delegates application administration to others.

Useful link: Identity and Access Management – The Increasing Concern on Cloud Security

What is the Difference Between Identity Management and Access Management?

Since so few individuals need to be aware of the differences, identity management and access management tools are essentially the same. At the very least, they are unaware of the differences between the two concepts. Therefore, although they have a connection, they are different.

The Identity management portal refers to authenticating users
Access management refers to authorized users

Identity Management

An identity management system handles digital identities, which entail entries and digital attributes in the database that provide a user with a special designation. Its administration involves creating, maintaining, supervising, and deleting such identities as they function within the business network. In addition, companies must ensure users have the permissions necessary to do their tasks and limit unauthorized access. It also manages authentication.

Access Management

Meanwhile, access management tools handle user’s decisions on whether they have to allow or block from accessing a database and resources. Moreover, it handles the access portals through protocols and login pages. Instead, it handles authorization.

How to Deploy Your IAM System: Cloud vs. On-premises

One of the main factors contributing to the popularity of cloud services is their quick and simple implementation. On the other hand, with an on-premises deployment, you are required to provide the computers and have someone install the software on them. This takes a while, especially in a clustered environment with HA or HP (High Availability or High-Performance environment).

Earlier, most identity and access management was handled by a server on an organization’s on-premises. However, most IAM deployment services are handled by a cloud service provider to reduce the company’s physical maintenance expenses.

Useful link: IAM Best Practices for Optimal Cloud Security

What is AWS Identity and Access Management?

IAM is the IAM testing tools system integrated into Amazon Web Services (AWS). By running AWS IAM, you may establish users and groups and permit them to access AWS services and resources.

AWS IAM offers users free access.

AWS IAM service offers:

AWS multi-factor authentication
Access control for AWS resources with great precision
Analysis tools to verify and improve policy
Combine with external identity management solutions

What Does an IAM Implementation Strategy Include?

An IAM solution should be designed using zero-trust principles such as identity-based security policies and least privilege access as the cornerstone of a zero-trust architecture. The following six steps are the IAM implementation strategies.

1) Zero-Trust Policy

A zero-trust policy means that a company’s IAM testing tools solution constantly monitors and secures its users’ identification and access points. Earlier, companies functioned under the “once you’re in, you have access” policy. But zero-trust rules ensure that every employee is continually recognized and their access is managed.

2) Secure Access

IAM testing tools should verify the identities of those logging in since identity-level security is crucial. This could include implementing MFA and adaptive authentication to evaluate the context of the login attempt, including location, time, device, etc.

3) Secured Privileged Accounts

An access management system does not treat all accounts equally. To reflect their role as an organization’s gatekeeper, a level of security and assistance can be offered to accounts with privileged access to sensitive information or specific tools.

4) Central Identity Management

Zero trust’s primary principle is accessing resources at the identity level. Consequently, centralizing the management of such identities can make this process much easier. This can entail transferring users from other platforms or synchronizing your IAM testing tools with other user directories in your culture, such as a directory for human resources.

5) Policy Based Control

Users should not be granted more privileges than necessary; they should only be allowed permission to carry out their necessary tasks. Users should be granted access to resources through an IAM deployment depending on their department, job role, or other relevant qualities. The centrally controlled identification solution can then use these policies to secure resources.

6) Training and Support

IAM service providers offer training for administrators and users who will be most involved with the product. They frequently offer long-term customer services to ensure the health of your identity and access management tools installation and its users.

Useful link: Regulatory Compliance Made ‘Easier’ With IAM Solutions

Conclusion

IAM is an important project for any business. It is becoming more business-aligned and demands business skills, not just technical experts. Enterprises with well-developed identity and access management tools capabilities can lower their identity management portal system expenses while significantly increasing their agility in supporting new business initiatives.

But most significantly, the hosting environment must be one of the primary deciding elements when selecting an IAM solution. Your options will ultimately depend on your specific business, IT needs, and the user base (internal/external, IoT device, etc.) you want to support. This is where Veritis steps in.

Veritis, the Stevie Awards winner, has extensive knowledge and expertise in implementing complicated IT projects and integrating new technology in a dynamic environment. Dynamic, scalable, resilient, and responsive products ensure rapid growth and excellent value for our clients. So, approach us to embrace productivity with the most excellent IAM tools.

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