Artificial intelligence (AI) is often associated with risks like deepfakes and misinformation, but when leveraged properly, it can bring tremendous benefits to organizations across various domains, especially in cybersecurity. One of AI’s most transformative roles lies in augmenting identity management systems. AI-powered identity lifecycle management stands at the forefront of digital identity, helping to strengthen security, simplify governance, and enhance the user experience.

Benefits of AI-Powered Identity

AI transcends traditional barriers between different business areas, creating synergies that were previously unattainable:

• Operational Efficiency: AI reduces risk and enhances security, leading to improved operational efficiency.
• Cyber Resilience: It enables businesses to achieve their cybersecurity goals by ensuring resilience against cyber threats.
• Regulatory Compliance: AI ensures agile and secure access to data, meeting regulatory requirements effectively.

AI and Unified Identity

AI-powered identity systems deliver the intelligence needed to detect attacks and correct access anomalies that impact identity infrastructure. Central to AI’s effectiveness is the unification of identity. When identity information is unified, AI can work across a holistic surface, seamlessly meeting business requirements.

Real-World Applications of AI-Powered Identity

Mitigating Access Errors and Cyberattacks: AI technologies can mitigate access errors and address the growing number of identity-based cyberattacks. Machine learning models help identify signals of an attack, such as behavioral anomalies that might indicate data exfiltration attempts.

Risk Detection for Identity Governance and Administration (IGA): AI-powered identity governance can detect unusual behaviors and data exposure risks. For instance, One Identity Safeguard uses the “Random Forests” algorithm to analyze data like keystroke dynamics and login times, identifying anomalies and automating threat responses. This approach not only enhances security but also helps lower the cybersecurity skills barrier.

Access Management: AI takes access management beyond traditional authentication. One Identity OneLogin utilizes the Vigilance AI™ Threat Engine to analyze data, using User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) to create user profiles and detect anomalies. This data can also be integrated into SIEM and SOC systems to further bolster security.

Entitlement Management: Managing role-based access manually can be cumbersome, but AI simplifies this with role mining and role discovery. One Identity’s approach allows continuous optimization of team roles, making entitlement management an automated task that ensures precise access control across the organization.

Conclusion

Identity management systems must keep pace with the rising sophistication of identity-based threats. AI-powered augmentation is critical for enhancing identity lifecycle management, entitlement management, and IGA. By unifying identity services, AI endows organizations with the resilience needed to counteract even the most complex threats, making identity management more secure and effective.