Identity and Access Management (IAM) is an essential component of information security that cannot be overlooked in any information security course. IAM, as it is popularly known, is a policy and technology framework that ensures appropriate access to resources in technology systems. It is critical to ensuring that the right people have access to the right resources at the right time for valid reasons.
IAM involves creating identities for users (people, systems, or services) who need to access resources on a network or system. These identities are managed throughout their lifecycle, from creation to retirement. A user's identity is usually linked to attributes such as name, identification number, access privileges and roles within an organization.
Once an identity is created, the next step is access management. This is the process of ensuring that identities have the appropriate access rights to perform their functions. Access management involves defining access policies that determine who can access which resources and under what circumstances. These policies are then implemented through access controls.
Access controls include authentication, which verifies a user's identity before granting access, and authorization, which determines which resources an authenticated user can access. Access controls also include auditing, which records user activity for suspicious activity detection and compliance with access policies.
IAM also involves session management, which is the process of managing the user's interaction with the system once access is granted. This includes monitoring user activity during the session, terminating inactive sessions, and ensuring sessions are terminated securely.
A crucial part of IAM is the management of privileged identities. This is the process of managing identities that have elevated privileges, such as system administrators. Management of privileged identities is critical because these identities have the potential to cause significant harm if compromised.
IAM also involves managing the identities of devices and services. This includes identity management for devices such as computers and smartphones, as well as services such as apps and APIs. Device and service identity management is important to ensure that only authorized devices and services can access resources.
Finally, IAM involves managing federated identities. That is, managing identities that are shared across multiple organizations. Federated identity management is important to enable secure collaboration across organizations.
In summary, Identity and Access Management is an essential component of information security that ensures that the right people have access to the right resources at the right time for valid reasons. It involves creating and managing identities, defining and implementing access policies, managing sessions, managing privileged identities, managing device and service identities, and managing federated identities.
