IAM is your gatekeeper. It manages who can access your systems, what they can access once they’re in, and how you monitor what they’re doing while they’re there. 

IAM also manages the entire digital identity lifecycle. From provisioning accounts for new hires to de-provisioning access for those who leave the company, IAM authenticates users, authorizes them, and audits their activities.

While IAM is great at controlling who can access your systems, threat actors are still finding their way in. That’s where Huntress comes in with Managed Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR). We protect your organization against suspicious activity after an identity is authenticated and authorized to access systems and data. We’ll dive into why that’s important below.

 Here are the four things you should focus on when looking for an IAM solution provider:

1. Single sign-on (SSO) 

SSO makes sure that your users only have to authenticate once to access all the applications and systems they need. Forget the 10 passwords for 10 different applications that you have today. Your users will thank you, and so will your helpdesk team when you reduce the password reset tickets.

2. Multi-factor authentication (MFA)

MFA is table stakes. Relying on passwords alone is insufficient. The second factor, whether it’s an app-generated code, a fingerprint, or a hardware token, will significantly increase an attacker’s effort to gain access.

3. User provisioning and deprovisioning

Though a boring function, this is where security gaps hide. Automated provisioning creates accounts for new employees, updates them when roles change, and deactivates them when employees leave.

4. Access monitoring and reporting 

This tracks user activity and access patterns, recording when users log in, attempt to access restricted resources, or perform other notable actions. It also generates audit and compliance reports.

Ok, let's talk leaders. There are quite a few players in the IAM platform market, but here are some of the most commonly used identity providers you should know: 

• Okta is likely the one that you’ve heard of the most. They’re cloud native, have integrations with every app known to man, and have a surprisingly clean interface. Okta offers solutions for workforce identity, customer identity (using Auth0), and privileged access.

• Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) is a no-brainer if you’re already a heavy user of Microsoft services. Everything from Office 365 to Azure to Windows just works together here. And their conditional access policies are actually quite nice.

• Ping Identity is great for complex and highly distributed environments, particularly if you’re operating in multiple clouds. They excel at API security and customer identity, and their identity orchestration capabilities are highly advanced.

• CyberArk dominates privileged access management (PAM). Want to protect admin credentials and sensitive secrets? These guys have that covered.

Choosing an IAM platform requires considering factors like budget, scale, compliance, and user experience:

• Budget and deployment: IAM platforms come in various pricing models, such as cloud-based or on-premises solutions. Cloud-based solutions usually have lower initial costs, but may require recurring subscription fees. On-premises solutions may have higher upfront costs, but give you more control over the infrastructure. Consider the total cost of ownership and your deployment constraints.

• Your size and growth: The number of users, devices, and resources in your organization will affect the complexity and scalability of the IAM solution you need. Consider the current and future growth of your organization.

• Compliance requirements: If your organization operates in a highly regulated industry, such as healthcare, finance, or government, you may have specific requirements and standards for IAM, like data privacy, auditability, or identity verification. Make sure to check the compliance and security certifications of each IAM platform.

• Integration: IAM platforms need to work seamlessly with the applications and services that your organization uses, both cloud-based and on-premises. The IAM solution you choose should support integration with your existing systems and platforms. You don't want to disrupt your business processes or force users to change their workflows.

IAM is important, but like many solutions for cybersecurity, it’s not a silver bullet. The best security programs weave IAM into broader frameworks like Zero Trust, which assumes no user or device should be trusted by default. IAM is one pillar of a Zero Trust strategy, providing key functions like validating identities and enforcing least-privilege access. 

But Zero Trust requires more than identity proofing at the login screen—it also requires watching users' activity after they authenticate. This is where traditional IAM has a blind spot. IAM tools excel at keeping unauthorized users out through proper authentication and authorization. But what if an attacker steals legitimate credentials through phishing or credential stuffing? The attacker is now indistinguishable from an authorized user in your IAM system, and that door is now wide open.

Not so fun fact: In 2024, attacks on Microsoft 365 environments became more prevalent and sophisticated, with nearly half of detections stemming from access rule violations, such as attempts from restricted VPNs or unauthorized geolocations. This is exactly why traditional IAM alone isn’t enough. 

—Huntress Cyber Threat Report, 2025

The top IAM solutions are great at one thing: Keeping unauthorized users out of your systems. But they’re not designed to find and stop the active, identity-based attacks that are happening right now, inside your environment.  

That’s what Managed ITDR from Huntress does. It’s the detection and response tool that makes your IAM solution even better by finding the suspicious activity that traditional access controls might not catch, like anomalous access patterns, credential abuse, privilege escalation attempts, and lateral movement. Huntress ITDR is your organization’s internal security system, notifying you of suspicious activity when something’s not right. Because in today’s security landscape, identity really is the new perimeter, and the new perimeter needs both locks and alarms. Don’t wait for an attack to happen; book a demo today.