5 Identity and Access Management Pitfalls (and How to Overcome Them)

To help you avoid these pitfalls, this article lists the most common IAM challenges that enterprises encounter and how you can overcome them to benefit your business in the long run.

What is Identity and Access Management?

Identity and Access Management (IAM) is a set of digital solutions that allow enterprises to actively identify roles and provide access privileges of internal identities within a centralized and private network.

This access management system is usually used in an employer-employee-based setting, allowing employers to assign employees certain roles and access to their organization's database.

Why is it important to implement IAM?

IAM systems to your business allow you to manage and store your database in a centralized and secure platform effectively. It helps streamline many of their internal processes from employee onboarding, employee management, role changes, database management etc.

Moreover, IAM protects your data against compromised user credentials, data breaches and viruses by implementing a high level of security from Multi-Factor authentication (MFA), Single Sign-On (SSO) and Single Source of Truth (SSoT).

5 common IAM pitfalls (and how to avoid them)

1. Treating IAM as a project

One of the most common pitfalls that companies encounter when implementing IAM solutions is when companies treat it as a project. IAM is a multi-phased and multi-year program, usually comprised of a series of projects that actively manage your organization's database, allowing you to streamline your internal processes.

Moreover, IAM supports numerous business operations by streamlining internal processes. Recognizing IAM as such allows you to create robust IAM strategies that cater to long-term business goals, effective operational models, organizational alignment and continuous improvement to IAM solutions.

2. A lack of scalability

Although IAM platforms primarily revolve around catering to managing employees and internal databases, it’s still important to ensure that your IAM solutions have scalability features to cater to the ever-increasing change in technology and digital solutions.

The demands of modern apps require horizontal auto-scaling and global distribution for identity services. To stay up-to-date with current industry standards, internal systems should be able to cater to constant upgrades and tools within internal structures within an organization's access management practices.

3. Neglecting security measures for cloud-based databases

One of the benefits of implementing IAM solutions provides companies with a higher level of security measures for their cloud-based database. Around 92% of organizations utilize cloud-based storage systems to keep important company data, allowing them to provide access to employees who need to use the said data.

IAM allows organizations to perform remote operations with company databases as businesses opt to continue work-from-home and hybrid work arrangements. Neglecting to utilize proper security measures provided by IAM solutions can place your business at risk to common cyber threats such as data breaches, viruses and Denial-of-Service (DOS) attacks.

Using IAM can incorporate several authentications and data security methods to keep your company safe from cyber attacks and keep unauthorized users from accessing your database. You can use the following methods:

• MFA
• SSO
• Data encryption
• Adaptive and passwordless authentication

Moreover, using frictionless and passwordless authentication methods can increase your security as it eliminates the need for password creation among your users, which have a higher risk of hacking and account breaches.

4. Lack of proper metrics

A number of organizations lack the proper metric system that measures the status and maturity of an IAM environment, which could lead to a dysfunctional and risky IAMplatform. The best IAM solutions focus on providing common business and control objectives that strengthen an organization's internal network or platform.

To counter this, it’s ideal for interacting with your business, risk and compliance and IT departments to define business objectives that will meet industry standards as well as the demands of an application team, HR and other business units.

Coverage metrics help you oversee enterprise goals and compliance progress by risk level. There are two kinds of coverage metrics that you can use to help your business:

• Business-objective metrics: This metric system helps you track your progress towards meeting business needs, track applications that use IAM services and identify gaps in your IAM efficiency.
• Control-objective metrics: This measures and tracks applications and systems' compliance against IAM control objectives. This tells you which applications are compliant with control objectives and which lag in control compliance.
• Performance metrics: This provides transaction-level reporting that measures the efficiency of services and projects. It tracks which IAM services are being used effectively and which IAM services require improvements.

Additionally, you can align security control objectives with applicable industry frameworks such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

5. Technology as the focus of IAM Investment

IAM solutions focus on providing solutions to elements beyond technology, such as creating robust organizational structures and effective risk management strategies. You can effectively utilize IAM platforms for your organization by increasing the focus on establishing IAM methodologies and governance frameworks, improving standards, reengineering internal procedures and employing playbooks that can benefit your company in the long run.

Secure the right IAM strategies for your enterprise

Securing the right IAM strategies allows you to provide numerous access management solutions to help your business thrive. Implementing effective access management processes is key to ensuring that your company is safe from IAM and cyber security risks. Proper training and communication between respective departments in your business are important to ensure that your IAM platform runs smoothly.