Identity and Device Management for The Extended Enterprise

The scope of what an IT department manages today is changing rapidly. They have to continue to secure and manage their existing on-premises technology while also taking advantage of the cloud to modernize their systems, become more competitive and better serve their users and the business. And the definition of the users that they need to serve has also expanded. Employees are still a critical user population, but in today’s increasingly networked and collaborative business world, IT also has to secure and manage access for contractors, partners, suppliers and contingent workers. The numbers associated with those users are typically much larger and more transient in nature.

At Oktane, we are highlighting several of our investments that are helping IT deal with these two realities in the extended enterprise. Solutions that help them embrace the cloud and also provide a bridge to their on-premises infrastructure and new ways to better manage the user population outside of their employee base.

LDAP Authentication for Universal Directory: A Bridge to the Past, and the Way Forward

Okta Universal Directory today has powerful integrations to Active Directory, LDAP and HR systems, and it is quickly becoming the go-forward directory for customers’ employees, partners and contractors. Now we’re adding additional capabilities to our cloud-first Universal Directory so on-premises applications can authenticate directly to Universal Directory – eliminating the need for expensive on-premises LDAP servers for large enterprises. For younger companies, it removes one of the last barriers to a 100% cloud approach for all of their directory needs, no more on-premises AD or LDAP required.

Okta Integration Network: Exhaustive Coverage of All Enterprise Technologies

Our ability to connect users and technologies goes beyond directory services. We have a tremendous track record with the Okta Application Network – today with more than 5,000 applications integrated and a robust ecosystem of partners and IT admins who have created tens of thousands of integrations using our SDKs and tools. As customers use our initial products more broadly in their environment and we expand our product portfolio, we are extending the power of that network to new types of integrations beyond applications, including vendors for networking and security, analytics and API Gateway. With this expansion we have renamed that network to reflect the broader scope and it is now known as the Okta Integration Network. We are excited about extending the reach and value of our technology ecosystem – including partners like Palo Alto Networks, F5, IBM QRadar and Sumo Logic – to address the breadth of ways that IT departments can unlock the value of the entire Okta product portfolio.

Extended Okta Lifecycle Management: Every Person in the Extended Enterprise

There are also more people than ever that need access to an organization’s data and resources, including contractors, partners, suppliers and contingent workers. These users present real identity management challenges – they are not in HR systems so onboarding and offboarding is not automated, and enterprises don’t want to put them in AD for cost and security reasons. We’ve created new self-service registration and Okta Lifecycle Management policies to provide a turnkey, out-of-the-box way for enterprises to create a highly customized and simple registration experience for partners and contractors – enabling them to easily and securely connect these broader sets of users that make up their extended enterprise.

Identity Driven Security Helps Prevent Breaches

Because we have more people and more technologies than ever before, we also need new ways to protect our data and resources. We have historically differentiated in the market with a very secure, reliable service – even entering highly regulated markets like Federal Government and healthcare. To help IT and security teams further protect this new reality, we’ve announced a number of new capabilities including enhancing our Adaptive Multi-Factor Authentication tool to allow all of our customers to ensure their experience with Okta is even more secure.

Oktane17: What’s Next in Supporting Our Customers

Each of these advancements is another step for us in supporting our customers with the tools and resources they need to take advantage of the latest technologies and drive success for their business. These solutions, when paired with the work we’ve done to increase security of the Okta Identity Cloud and extend identity to customer-facing experiences, are core areas we believe will have a significant impact in the weeks, months and years to come – and we’re looking forward to hearing what’s next for our customers at the event this week.

For more information on the Okta Identity Cloud enhancements, visit https://www.okta.com/products.