Choosing the proper access management solution for your IAM strategy can take time and effort. Consider many factors, including cost, scalability, and reliability. IAM solutions can strengthen security, reduce risk, and comply with regulations like GDPR. They provide a suite of tools to reduce the points of failure in your IT environment and make it easier for employees to work.
Cost
The benefits of Identity and Access Management (IAM) include increased security, reduced operational costs, improved efficiency, and enhanced business productivity. Whether used for employees, contractors, or partners, an access management solution ensures that users have the right level of access to their tools. This prevents them from wasting time on complicated passwords and enables them to work efficiently. It also reduces the risk of sensitive data being compromised or stolen by ensuring that the most secure software suite is the one that is being used. IAM can also help to streamline IT operations by automating key processes, reducing manual overheads, and eliminating the need for 3rd party solutions. Reducing IT support tickets related to password resetting and onboarding/offboarding of new users translates into tangible financial savings. In addition, the ability to de-provision orphaned accounts is an effective way to lower the attack surface of the IT infrastructure. Many organizations rely on legacy IAM tools, which can be expensive and complex. Choosing an IAM platform that offers an MFA security and privileged access management can reduce the total cost of ownership.
Scalability
An IAM solution needs to be scalable to meet your organization’s needs. It should accommodate new users and applications without compromising security or performance. In addition, it should also be able to handle increased data volumes. Choosing an IAM product with scalability can help your business avoid costly downtime and improve productivity. An IAM system should be able to authenticate users, control access privileges, and audit activity. It should also be able to monitor users’ activities to ensure they do not breach company systems or steal data. It should also support multi-factor authentication (MFA), which requires a user to supply more than one form of identification. This includes security codes sent to a mobile device, physical security keys, and biometrics such as fingerprint scans. The best IAM solutions are centralized and can be used to manage identity and access across the entire IT infrastructure. This makes it easier to manage policies and compliance. A centralized IAM solution also provides a single source of truth, making monitoring and auditing data and access easy. IAM tools should provide role-based access control to simplify granting and revoking access. They should also include an advanced scalability framework that allows you to grow your business without sacrificing security. These capabilities are essential to meeting compliance requirements like those in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Reliability
When it comes to IAM, a reliable system is critical. This includes ensuring it can scale with growth and handle user additions, device updates, and changes to network architecture without losing functionality or exposing sensitive information. The reliability of an IAM solution should also be ensured through regular audits and a robust monitoring process. In addition to scalability, IAM tools should be accessible and intuitive for users. This can encourage employee adoption of the tool and reduce the risk of employees finding workarounds that bypass security measures. It is also essential to consider how the IAM tool will support remote work and mobile devices. Finally, IAM solutions should also be able to de-provision access privileges as users leave the organization or transition between roles. Manually de-provisioning access privileges can be time-consuming and lead to security gaps that hackers can exploit. A reliable IAM solution will automate this process and make sure that access is revoked quickly and effectively. An IAM solution should also support the least privilege principle, a crucial best practice for IAM security. This means that privileged users should only be given the minimum access necessary to complete their work. This reduces the attack surface, improving overall security and reducing help desk requests. This is critical for cloud and IoT applications with higher security risks.
Integrations
Choosing an IAM solution that can interface with other systems is essential. This may include Windows services like Active Directory and file servers, cloud apps like Microsoft 365 or SAP, or third-party applications. This ensures the system can ingest data and update permissions across all systems. Selecting a provider with a world-class reputation for reliability and security is also essential. An IAM tool should be able to authenticate users and confirm their identities using methods such as multi-factor authentication (MFA) or adaptive authentication, which take context into account when verifying a user’s identity. This will help prevent passwords from being stolen from a workstation and used against the business by hackers. Another essential function of an IAM solution is managing an identity’s lifecycle within a company. This includes de-provisioning access to a user when they leave the company or changing their privileges as their role changes. The system should also be able to detect a change in privileges and automatically revoke them. An IAM system is a vital part of any organization’s cybersecurity infrastructure. It can help mitigate risk by ensuring that only authorized users can access sensitive information, reducing IT support and administrative costs. It can also increase employee productivity and make compliance and auditing easier.
