How to select the right identity and access (IAM) solutions

Managing who has access to what content is at the center of data protection. Confidential records? Keep access stripped down and limited. General business data? Make sure the right teams can access it without friction. 

Identity and access management (IAM) solutions are the backbone of secure data access, letting you manage identities and meet data compliance requirements across your entire environment, whether cloud or hybrid. With the need to manage complex identities and prevent breaches, IAM is commonly adopted by organizations using multiple SaaS and other digital tools. 

In this guide, we’ll explain what IAM is, cover the top solutions, and show you how to choose the right tool based on your architecture.

What’s identity and access management?

Identity and access management (IAM) is a two-part cybersecurity framework that governs how identities are handled in a company and what those accounts can access. 

The identity management side of IAM assigns employees unique digital identities and records their roles in the company. It also lays out how someone can authenticate their own identity, ranging from simple password systems to full biometrics. Access management then determines what each role can interact with or read, limiting access to specific applications and data based on privilege levels. Supporting technologies include multi-factor authentication, zero-trust network access, and single sign-on (SSO).

These systems interact to ensure only the right individuals have the proper access to content. It forms the basis of data privacy and protection, helping you meet governance requirements. When IAM is properly integrated into your business, you can expect:

• Reduced IT workload with automated permissions provisioning
• Better user experience with SSO
• Scalable solutions for hybrid and multi-cloud environments

5 best IAM solutions

The best IAM solution for your business is the one that meets your internal requirements and integrates naturally into your tech stack. 

Here are some of the leading identity and access management services and the scenarios where they work best.

1. AWS IAM: Best for Amazon Web Services users

Businesses already using the AWS ecosystem can integrate AWS IAM into their existing tech stack. This allows you to set up and monitor access to all connected resources, services, and APIs. You’ll write policies in JSON, defining the user, group, role, and resource level for custom policy scenarios.

AWS IAM also supports temporary identity credentials, federated access, and service-linked roles, which come in handy for complex environments. It’s mainly an AWS infrastructure-level access governance system, rather than a traditional identity orchestration system for your business. But if you host the majority of your cloud infrastructure with AWS, this native integration will prove useful.

2. Microsoft Entra ID: Best for hybrid and conditional access management

Microsoft Entra ID, formerly Azure AD, aims to prevent identity attacks by securing both cloud and on-premises apps and resources. Compared to AWS, it goes beyond its native ecosystem and connects to active SaaS applications. You can apply organizational policies across all of your environments, simplifying admin management of identity systems.

Pushing back against human-caused breaches, Entra ID is also introducing passwordless systems. By substituting passwords out for centralized passkeys, employees can log in faster while reducing the likelihood of password-based attacks. You can use conditional access permissions that shift based on device compliance, risk level, and user behavior. It’s a comprehensive system that works both inside and outside your M365 environment.

3. Oracle Identity Management: Best for complex identity management 

Oracle Identity Management is designed for complex, highly regulated enterprise environments. If you need advanced identity governance and access controls, then its full identity lifecycle management will help you comply across the board. If your organization already uses Oracle infrastructure, this will naturally build into your system and improve access management.

Although it offers a level of granular control over permissions settings, Oracle does require a great deal of technical expertise to set up. Once in place, you can scale your identity management to support organizational growth or temporary user expansion. 

4. IBM Verify: Best for large organizations

IBM Verify builds on its legacy ISAM system, providing modern identity and access management capabilities. These two solutions work together to authenticate user identities, manage content access, and comply with security regulations. IBM embeds a range of self-service tools within their products, meaning that users can reset their passwords and recover their accounts independently, helping to reduce IT support workloads.

IBM Security Verify also includes environment scanning tools that help pinpoint inactive accounts and recommend remediations to take. This broad tool helps organizations implement compliance-driven identity management processes.

5. Okta IAM: Best for specific use cases

Okta divides its IAM offerings by identity type, including workforce, customer, external, AI agent, non-human, and personal identities. You can further customize the specific form of IAM you’re looking for by choosing a solution built specifically for your industry. Select from public sector, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, travel and hospitality, technology, non-profit, and energy for a tailored solution.

The central Okta IAM solution focuses on reducing manual admin tasks like password resets and automating where possible. By prioritizing agility and ease of use, Okta quickly deploys secure access controls without the need for heavy overhead customization. If your company has a predefined use case and wants an out-of-the-box solution, Okta provides everything you need without bespoke engineering.

How to choose the best identity and access management tools

With so many different identity management solutions on the market, it’s helpful to break down what your company needs. Knowing which internal requirements and features are needed will point you towards the right tool. 

Here are a few IAM solution features to look for:

• Scalability for enterprise and cloud environments: An IAM solution needs to be able to scale alongside your business. This is especially true moving to cloud environments, as your provider should be able to cover a hybrid approach. Look for highly scalable cloud-based IAM solutions that won’t impact performance.
• Integration with existing infrastructure and SaaS apps: SaaS apps are the backbone of many BI and data analytics systems. Across the data lake, data warehouse, and source end of pipelines, you need to be able to connect to SaaS apps and protect the content within them. IAM tools need to extend to your entire environment, not just baseline infrastructure.
• Multi-factor authentication (MFA) and advanced security features: MFA is a core part of most IAM systems, providing an easy way for users to authenticate their identities. Some systems will also include more technical authentication systems for high-risk assets. If you work with highly confidential documents, these additional security layers are necessary.
• Policy automation and compliance support: Security policies only work when they’re deployed across an entire company ecosystem. Without methods of automating policy application, it can be a challenge to scale your IAM systems to meet compliance demands. Look for tools that can turn your written policies into real-world access monitoring and risk detection.
• User experience and ease of deployment: While all the extra benefits are useful, they only serve you if your teams have democratized access. Look for IAM systems that are easy to deploy and provide a smooth user experience for your admins.

How Fivetran enhances IAM for secure, governed data access

IAM solutions make sure that only the right people have access to your company data. But just controlling access doesn’t guarantee that the information you use is trustworthy. Building trust in your data begins with efficient and accurate integration and enrichment.

‍Fivetran offers fully automated ELT pipelines that allow your business to ingest high-quality, consistent data from your source systems. By standardizing schemas, handling schema drift automatically, and syncing information across environments, Fivetran improves visibility across your data stack, providing you with accurate and up-to-date data.

When combined with IAM products, Fivetran helps you create a stronger foundation for governance-first data access. Get started for free today or request a demo to find out more.

FAQs

How does identity management function in the cloud?

Identity management in the cloud aims to identify users before they connect to cloud systems. Identity-based controls act as perimeter guards that authenticate users before allowing them to interact with or read any content located in the cloud. 

What is the primary goal of access management software?

The main goal of access management software is to make sure only authenticated, authorized users have access to company resources. Using this approach reduces the risk of data exposure and keeps you in line with governance regulations.

What are the 4 pillars of IAM?

The four pillars of IAM are administration, authentication, authorization, and auditing. Administration is about managing, creating, and maintaining identities in your company. Authentication is the process used to ensure someone is who they say they are. Authorization focuses on setting proper permission levels and controls. Finally, auditing is regularly checking that all the other pillars meet your compliance requirements.

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