Maximizing Security – The Latest Trends In Identity And Access Management Tools

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    As cyberattacks become more sophisticated, organizations must take a holistic approach to identity and access management (IAM). Authentication and security processes should be simple, convenient, and secure.

    With the right IAM tools, your teams can deliver robust data security and compliance adherence while keeping pace with shifting digital risks. Read on to discover the latest trends that can help you achieve these goals.

    Authentication

    It would help if you authenticated users to secure access to your company’s information systems. IAM solutions use a combination of something you know (aka knowledge factors), such as login credentials, and something you have (aka possession factors), like a fingerprint sensor or access card, to verify a user’s identity. This helps keep hackers out and authorized users in.

    As companies move toward cloud computing and remote work, authentication becomes even more crucial to securing sensitive files stored remotely. IAM also helps prevent hacking and data breaches from privilege escalation — when an unauthorized user gains more permissions than they need to complete their task.

    To prevent this, IAM security tools and solutions implement the principle of least privilege, in which users are given the level of access they need based on their role within the company. For example, a sales rep might only need to view firewall configurations and not be able to change them, while a junior security analyst would have complete access. To help with this, some IAM tools have started using artificial intelligence to get more granular and detect risky behavior, such as many failed login attempts or unusual mouse-use patterns.

    Security

    As hackers become more sophisticated, cybersecurity systems must continue to evolve to a more robust level. IAM trends focus on leveraging more vital authentication methods to minimize cybersecurity risks and ensure that primary controls are not bypassed.

    One example is the increased use of biometric authentication. This advanced cybersecurity process verifies identity by examining unique characteristics like fingerprints and facial features, making it much harder for hackers to break into systems. Another example is risk-based authentication controls, which adjust the security requirements based on a user’s behavior, IP address, device used, and geographic location. This can require more verification factors for high-risk transactions while allowing low-risk trades to proceed with minimal or no additional authentication.

    In addition, IAM technologies are focusing on improving the user experience by building more intuitive access control processes. This helps improve productivity by reducing users’ friction when trying to work remotely or access company systems. This is done through a password and privileged access management (PAM) technology. It also includes zero-trust technologies that allow organizations to apply strong security to their entire digital supply chain.

    Privacy

    As attackers get more sophisticated and targeted, they find ways to penetrate systems more efficiently. This drives the need for security teams to deploy risk-aware authentication and authorization processes, which incorporate continuous verification of user risk when logging on or verifying identity.

    Data anonymization technologies to mask data have become a popular solution for increasing the privacy of individuals while maintaining the integrity and utility of the information being analyzed. This approach can be adapted to many IAM tools and allows individuals to choose how much of their identity information they want to share with a given service.

    Zero-friction security is a trend that continues to grow as more companies seek solutions that enable users to log on with minimal requirements, without the need for passwords or other forms of traditional authentication. This includes access management and authorization delivered over the internet, known as IDaaS. The benefits of IDaaS include a faster time to value and lower total cost of ownership.

    Compliance

    Many regulations and security standards mandate stringent data protection, including identity management. IAM solutions help IT managers enforce these policies by providing audit trails, access logs, and user activity monitoring. IT managers can also use these tools to ensure that users only have access to the required services, minimizing the risk of insider threats.

    Security teams are increasingly looking to harden the IAM infrastructure, with identity-related cyberattacks becoming more frequent. This includes implementing a zero-trust security framework, deploying unified IAM, and ensuring that all identities can be protected. It also integrates IAM with core security automation and triage technologies, such as SIEM, CASB, and IR/ML platforms. This approach enables security and IAM teams to prioritize, triage, and drive additional security workflows based on authenticated user risk. Use user risk to improve IAM with Elevate Security’s patented solution.

    Automation

    As cyberattacks become increasingly sophisticated and targeted, security teams must rely on more than passwords. They need a comprehensive approach that includes secrets management, PAM, IGA, and more. However, synchronizing these tools can take time and effort.

    Security automation enables teams to perform complex tasks faster and more accurately than humans while reducing costs. However, it must be based on clearly defined rules and processes to be effective. Otherwise, it could be susceptible to human error.

    The use of automation in IAM helps to prevent phishing attacks and mitigate the risk of data breaches. It also ensures the consistent application and enforcement of security policies.

    Companies must align with the latest compliance requirements and security standards, including GDPR, COPPA, HIPAA, and ISO/IEC 27001. One way to do this is by using a Zero Trust framework, which requires employees and users to prove who they are before being granted access to an organization’s systems or data. Integrating IAM with additional security solutions like SIEM, endpoint detection and response (EDR), and firewalls is also essential.

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