Identity and access management (IAM) is a set of business processes, policies, and technologies that make it easier to manage electronic or digital identities. Information technology (IT) managers can control user access to critical information within their organizations by implementing an IAM framework.
Single sign-on systems, two-factor authentication, multifactor authentication, and privileged access management are examples of IAM systems. These technologies also enable the secure storage of identity and profile data, as well as data governance functions to ensure that only necessary and relevant data is shared.
What is the significance of IAM?
Businesses and IT departments are under increasing regulatory and organizational pressure to safeguard access to corporate resources. As a result, they can no longer assign and track user privileges using manual and error-prone processes. IAM automates these tasks while also allowing for granular access control and auditing of all corporate assets on-premises and in the cloud.
IAM, with its ever-expanding set of features such as biometrics, behavioral analytics, and AI, is well suited to the rigors of the new security landscape. For example, IAM’s tight control over resource access in highly distributed and dynamic environments aligns with the industry’s transition from firewalls to zero-trust models, as well as with IoT security requirements.
While IT professionals may believe that IAM is only for larger organizations with larger budgets, the technology is available to businesses of all sizes.
