| Definition |
Identity and access management (IAM) is the security discipline that enables the right individuals to access the right resources at the right times for the right reasons.
IAM addresses the mission-critical need to ensure appropriate access to resources across increasingly heterogeneous technology environments, and to meet increasingly rigorous compliance requirements. This security practice is a crucial undertaking for any enterprise. It is increasingly business-aligned, and it requires business skills, not just technical expertise.
Enterprises that develop mature IAM capabilities can reduce their identity management costs and, more importantly, become significantly more agile in supporting new business initiatives.
Identity and Access Management (IAM) is a Cloud security concept used to protect identities, workloads, data, configurations, networks, or operational processes in cloud environments. Provider documentation may use the term with service-specific details, but this entry describes the broader Cloud concept.
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| Context & Usage |
In security and compliance work, this term helps teams describe controls, risks, identity practices, standards, audits, or protective technologies. It is relevant when managing access, reducing exposure, documenting safeguards, or demonstrating accountability.
Security teams, architects, auditors, and platform owners use this concept when reducing cloud risk, assigning responsibility, enforcing access, and protecting workloads.
Related concepts include Zero Trust and Encryption.
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