身份访问管理(IAM)

Learn how IAM effectively implements a security layer between users and on-premises or cloud-based servers, applications, and data.

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什么是身份及访问管理(IAM)?

身份访问管理(IAM) provides companies with tools used for controlling user access to their technical infrastructure. IAM effectively implements a security layer between users and on-premises or cloud-based servers, applications, and data. Each user receives an individual set of permissions based on their specific role. Storing one digital identity per user remains an important goal of IAM management.

这取决于公司的业务性质, IAM平台提供客户身份管理(CIAM), 员工身份管理, or both. In some scenarios, identity management systems also provide a digital identity to applications, cloud-based services, or microservices. The ultimate goal of IAM solutions is providing access to digital assets to certain identities, 在特定情况下.

Why is IAM Important?

Obviously, preventing unauthorized access to a company’s technical infrastructure, 包括应用程序和数据, remains critical. 在现代科技世界尤其如此 cyberattacks 数据隐私泄露事件经常出现在新闻中.

The growth of e-commerce has served to exacerbate the problem of cybercrime, and ransomware 继续影响全球的私人和公共组织.

In basic terms, any company that undergoes a customer data breach suffers a significant hit to their reputation. 在竞争激烈的商业世界中, this means that consumers will simply take their business somewhere else.

However, 某些商业部门的组织, like banking, finance, and insurance, must also deal with regulatory and compliance issues when their technical infrastructure gets hacked. 在这种环境下,健壮 cloud security  is essential. So, what is IAM?

How Does IAM Work? 

Simply put, IAM is designed to let the right people in (your employees) and keep the wrong people out (threat actors). Every service and asset in the cloud has its own identity that comes with multiple layers of permission, and IAM protects identity boundaries with automated monitoring and remediation built around:  

  • Access management 
  • Role management
  • 身份认证 
  • Compliance auditing

最低权限访问(LPA) 是IAM云生命周期方法的关键组成部分吗. It sets the minimum amount of access that a person or machine will need in order to do the job. Solutions leveraging LPA will typically employ automation to tighten or loosen permissions based on the user's role. 

Components of IAM

Any robust IAM platform provides a suite of technologies and tools aimed at governing access to a company's technical assets. 这个基本功能包括: 

  • Password management
  • 安全策略的实施
  • 访问监视、报告和警报
  • 身份管理和存储库 
  • Provisioning services

这些功能看起来像是“基本功能”,” but governing how they are implemented and maintained can very quickly become complicated. A solution that includes the above ensures proper access through identity-based policies, 资源政策, permission boundaries, 服务控制政策, and session policies.

Over time, 这些功能的治理将会改变, 随着IAM边界的发展,安全性变得越来越严格. In the end, IAM is an essential piece in any organization’s strategic SecOps approach. 

IAM解决方案的主要功能

这取决于公司的需要, some vendors provide separate IAM solutions for on-premises and cloud-based environments. Additionally, other IAM technologies exist to meet certain identity management scenarios.

For example, API security provides single sign-on capabilities for mobile and IoT devices accessing a technical infrastructure. This approach makes sense for B2B use cases, as well as cloud and microservices integration.

As mentioned earlier, CIAM supports identity management for customers accessing a company’s ERP, CRM, 以及其他类似的系统. Companies already embracing a cloud-based infrastructure need to consider Identity as a Service (IDaaS) for their IAM needs.

Finally, 身份管理和治理(IMG) 支持具有重要法规和遵从性需求的公司. This technology leverages an automated approach to identify lifecycle governance. Additionally, risk-based authentication (RBA) analyzes a user’s identity and context to determine a risk score. The system then requires higher-risk requests to use two-factor authentication to gain access.

Benefits of IAM

成功的企业不会在真空中茁壮成长. Instead, 他们依赖于培养与客户的关系, clients, vendors, 以及他们自己的员工. 这样做需要提供进入内部技术系统的机会, either on-premises, in the cloud, or a mix of both. IAM使这种访问以一种安全的方式成为可能.

随着企业不断拥抱移动和物联网, 受5G网络增长的推动, 需要一个健壮的IAM解决方案来支持这种扩展访问. Identity access management ensures security and compliance no matter the user’s location, 或者用户是否是一个人, device, or microservice.

Ultimately, implementing an IAM platform helps the company’s technical team work more efficiently. 

Challenges of IAM

Naturally, implementing an identity management platform remains a challenging process for many businesses, 因为它的存在会影响公司的整个安全堆栈. Because of this, network administrators need to be aware of various risks when adopting a new IAM solution.

One challenge is the onboarding of a new employee, contractor, application, or service. It’s critical that the responsible manager or HR person has the rights to provide this initial access. A similar concept applies when access needs to be modified for any reason. 适当地授权是至关重要的.

请注意,较新的IAM产品为此目的利用了自动化, 这在减少或取消访问权时也有不可估量的帮助. 这也是一个重要的法规遵从性问题. Dormant accounts with network access 是否有必须尽快修补的关键安全漏洞.

Monitoring trust relationships after granting access is another important challenge when implementing an IAM platform. Analyzing baseline user behavior helps in this regard; it makes it easier to detect when usage anomalies happen.

Any IAM solution must also closely integrate with the single sign-on (SSO) approach used by the organization. The SSO platform must easily provide secure access to a company’s entire suite of applications, 包括那些托管在本地或与云提供商.  

Finally, the chosen identity management process must seamlessly orchestrate with multiple cloud providers. A multi-cloud infrastructure provides the most challenges to identity and access management, 因为每个云提供商可能都有自己的安全方法. Successfully integrating an IAM solution that supports multiple cloud environments helps prevent any critical security risks.

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