CSA: What is Identity and Access Management [2025 Guide]

Jul 8, 2025

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Source URL: https://veza.com/blog/identity-access-management/
Source: CSA
Title: What is Identity and Access Management [2025 Guide]

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**Summary**: The text provides a comprehensive overview of Identity and Access Management (IAM) and its increasing importance in today’s digital landscape, where the threat of identity-related breaches is significant. It discusses the limitations of traditional IAM solutions and presents the need for more intelligent systems that can handle non-human identities and provide better visibility into access management. The implications of this for security professionals are critical, emphasizing a move towards more sophisticated IAM strategies that can adapt to modern challenges.

**Detailed Description**:

The text elaborates on the importance of Identity and Access Management (IAM) within organizations, particularly in light of the growing attack surface and the prevalence of identity-related incidents. Here’s a breakdown of the key points:

– **Importance of IAM**:
– 80% of organizations have faced an identity-related security incident.
– 75% of data breaches are associated with identity misuse.

– **IAM Functionality**:
– Controls who can access digital resources, ensuring only authorized individuals have appropriate access.
– Authentication (verifying identity) and Authorization (determining permissions) are critical functions.

– **Distinct Functions of IAM**:
– Differentiates between Identity Management (verifying user details) and Access Management (controlling resource access).
– Emphasizes the principle of least privilege, limiting user access strictly to what is necessary for their role.

– **IAM Process Overview**:
– Involves several continuous processes, from user onboarding to ongoing permission management.
– Requires enforcement of provisioning (setting up access) and deprovisioning (removing access).

– **Deployment Models**:
– **Cloud IAM**: Managed via cloud infrastructure, scalable, and flexible.
– **On-Premise IAM**: Managed within the organization’s infrastructure, offering control but posing scaling challenges.

– **Core Functionalities in IAM**:
– Identity Lifecycle Management
– Identity Governance
– User Authentication (MFA, biometrics)
– User Authorization
– Provisioning and Deprovisioning
– Resource Access Management (essential for Zero Trust)

– **IAM Tools and Technologies**:
– Discusses Single Sign-On (SSO), Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), Role-Based Access Control (RBAC), SAML, OpenID Connect, and SCIM.

– **Limitations of Traditional IAM Solutions**:
– Lack of integration with modern and custom applications, resulting in fragmented access control.
– Insufficient visibility into the permissions associated with user identities, especially for non-human identities.
– Outdated role definitions leading to excessive privileges and challenging compliance.

– **Modern Challenges**:
– Complex IT environments with dynamic and distributed systems.
– The increasing prevalence of service accounts and automation scripts necessitating new IAM strategies.

**Implications for Security Professionals**:
– The emphasis on advanced IAM solutions highlights the importance of adapting identity security strategies to address new threats, particularly from non-human identities that often bypass traditional security measures.
– Security teams must be proactive in evaluating their IAM infrastructures and consider implementing more sophisticated, intelligent IAM solutions that provide enhanced visibility and automation.
– Organizations are urged to adopt a comprehensive IAM strategy that prioritizes user lifecycle management, robust authentication methods, and stringent access governance to align with modern security demands.

This insights-rich landscape of IAM showcases the critical role it plays in safeguarding organizational assets, necessitating a strategic approach to identity security that aligns closely with evolving threats and operational requirements.

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