Best 10 Single Sign-On (SSO) Solutions For Business (2026)
We reviewed the leading SSO platforms on the number and quality of application integrations, MFA enforcement options, and how well they handle hybrid environments with on-premises and cloud applications.
Written by
Joel Witts
Technical Review by
Craig MacAlpine
Quick Summary
Single Sign-On (SSO) solutions allow users to authenticate once and access all authorized applications — reducing credential attack surface while giving security teams centralized access visibility and policy control. SSO reduces the multiple credential sets attackers can target through phishing and credential stuffing. We reviewed the top platforms and found JumpCloud, Thales SafeNet Trusted Access, and ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus to be the strongest on application integration breadth and hybrid environment support.
Single sign-on solves a real problem: users forget passwords, and threat actors can steal them. But the SSO market is crowded with platforms claiming deep integration, alongside frictionless experience and simplified administration.
The challenge isn’t picking an SSO tool, it’s picking one that fits your specific environment without creating new operational overhead. You need integration range across your SaaS portfolio. You need adaptive authentication that strengthens security without annoying legitimate users. Most importantly, you need platform stability. When SSO fails, access fails across everything connected to it.
We evaluated multiple SSO platforms across enterprise and mid-market deployments, testing integration speed, policy flexibility, user enrollment workflows, and real-world reliability. We reviewed customer feedback to separate marketing claims from operational reality.
JumpCloud is an open directory platform that provides secure, cloud-based SSO capabilities. Users can access work applications as well as apps that authenticate with LDAP, from IT services like Jenkins and OpenVPN to ticketing systems like Atlassian Jira to on-premises storage systems. The platform has been used by over 200,000 organizations worldwide.
JumpCloud Key Features
JumpCloud SSO delivers a single identity per user, giving admins full visibility into who accessed what, where, and when. Administrators create groups based on department or job role, then associate those groups to applications to restrict access and grant appropriate permissions. Adding a new user to a group automatically grants access to associated apps, streamlining onboarding.
All users, access policies, account provisioning, and deactivation are managed from a single console. A growing list of SAML and SCIM connectors enables out-of-the-box integrations with an extensive application library. JumpCloud SSO is available as a standalone solution or bundled with other JumpCloud identity, access, and device management solutions.
Our Take
We recommend JumpCloud SSO for SMBs and mid-market companies looking to streamline and tighten account security. The group-based access model simplifies onboarding and offboarding, and the LDAP support extends SSO to resources that many competitors don’t cover.
Strengths
- Single identity per user with full visibility into access attempts
- Group-based access automatically provisions app access on user onboarding
- SAML and SCIM connectors for extensive out-of-the-box application integrations
- LDAP support extends SSO to IT services and on-premises resources
- Available standalone or bundled with JumpCloud's wider identity platform
Cautions
- Pricing not publicly available; requires contacting sales for a quote
Thales is a global technology company providing security solutions across critical sectors for more than 30,000 organizations in 68 countries. SafeNet Trusted Access is their cloud-based access management platform, combining SSO, MFA, and granular access policies in a single integrated service. Gartner recognized Thales as a Visionary in the Magic Quadrant for Access Management in November 2025.
Thales SafeNet Trusted Access Key Features
Smart SSO enables users to log into all their accounts and applications using a single identity through one centralized portal. Admins configure scenario-based access policies per application that determine the authentication level required for each login attempt. The platform gathers contextual information on factors like known devices, location, and previous sessions in the background without disrupting users. When additional assurance is needed, adaptive MFA steps in with support for hardware tokens, certificate-based smart cards, mobile push and OTP, and FIDO devices. The central policy engine lets admins manage SSO and MFA policies at user, group, or application level. SafeNet Trusted Access offers more than 150 out-of-the-box integrations and is now available on Google Cloud Marketplace for streamlined procurement at scale.
Our Take
We recommend SafeNet Trusted Access for mid-sized to large enterprises that need centralized SSO with strong adaptive authentication controls. The scenario-based policy engine is a genuine differentiator, letting admins fine-tune access requirements without creating friction for low-risk logins. The multi-tier, multi-tenant architecture and 150-plus integrations make it a scalable option across diverse environments. Financial institutions and government agencies are among Thales’ current customer base, which speaks to the platform’s compliance credentials.
Strengths
- Smart SSO with centralized portal eliminates password fatigue across all cloud apps
- Scenario-based access policies adjust authentication requirements per application
- 150+ out-of-the-box integrations with third-party apps and services
- Multi-tier, multi-tenant architecture scales for complex enterprise environments
Cautions
- Pricing not publicly available; requires contacting Thales for a quote
ManageEngine, the IT management division of Zoho Corporation, offers ADSelfService Plus: a robust SSO and password management solution with built-in MFA capabilities. The platform provides secure access to Windows, macOS, and Linux machines, VPNs, applications, endpoints, and Outlook Web Access through integrated single sign-on enforced with multi-factor authentication.
ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus Key Features
ADSelfService Plus simplifies the login experience by letting users authenticate with Active Directory domain credentials and a second factor, then access all their corporate applications through SSO. The platform supports 19 authentication methods including security questions, authenticator apps, hardware security tokens, and facial recognition. Admins configure authentication policies from the admin console to enforce specific methods for specific groups and contexts, ensuring users access only the right applications and services. Custom password policies add an additional security layer by preventing poor password behaviors. The solution installs on servers or machines with 64-bit and 32-bit options, and integrates tightly with Active Directory for automatic user sync.
Our Take
We recommend ADSelfService Plus for larger organizations, especially in finance, IT, healthcare, and government, that need strong SSO alongside MFA and self-service password management. The 19 authentication methods give admins flexibility to match security requirements to different user populations. The Active Directory integration means deployment builds on existing infrastructure, and the self-service password reset module reduces help desk ticket volume. A solid choice for AD-first environments.
Strengths
- SSO with 19 MFA methods including biometrics, hardware tokens, and authenticator apps
- Conditional access policies enforce context-aware authentication per user group
- Self-service password reset reduces help desk tickets through AD integration
- Supports Windows, macOS, Linux, VPNs, and OWA from one platform
Cautions
- Endpoint MFA requires the Professional Edition; not available on lower tiers
Cisco Duo SSO
Cisco Duo is a widely deployed access management platform that pairs SSO with strong multi-factor authentication. We think it’s one of the easiest SSO solutions to deploy, particularly for organizations that need to get MFA and SSO in place quickly without a lengthy implementation. Duo is well suited for organizations of all sizes, from small teams to large enterprises.
Cisco Duo SSO Key Features
Duo SSO supports SAML 2.0 and OIDC, with an inline self-service portal that lets users manage their own authentication devices. The platform integrates with existing identity providers, so it layers on top of your current directory rather than replacing it. Duo’s device trust capabilities check the security posture of endpoints before granting access, which is a strong zero-trust feature. The Duo Push notification for MFA approval is well regarded for its simplicity.
What Customers Say
Duo is consistently praised for ease of deployment and user adoption. Something to be aware of is that the SSO capabilities are part of a broader access management suite, so organizations looking for SSO only may find the platform offers more than they need. Reviews also note that advanced policy features require higher-tier licensing.
Our Take
We were impressed by how quickly Duo can be deployed and adopted by end users. If you need a combined SSO and MFA solution that works with your existing identity provider, Duo is well worth considering. The device trust features add a meaningful layer of zero-trust security that goes beyond basic SSO.
Strengths
- Fast deployment with minimal infrastructure changes
- Duo Push MFA is simple and widely adopted by end users
- Device trust checks endpoint posture before granting access
- Layers on top of existing identity providers
Cautions
- Reviews flag that advanced policies require higher-tier plans
- Reviews note the platform does more than just SSO, which may be more than some teams need
CyberArk
CyberArk Identity is a SaaS-delivered identity platform that brings SSO together with privileged access management in a single offering. We think this is a strong option for enterprises that need to secure both standard workforce identities and privileged accounts from one place. The integration between SSO and PAM is what sets CyberArk apart in this space.
CyberArk Key Features
CyberArk Identity supports SSO via SAML, OIDC, and OAuth, with a large catalog of pre-integrated web and mobile applications. The key differentiator is the deep integration with CyberArk’s privileged access management tools, which allows organizations to enforce least-privilege access across both everyday and elevated accounts. The platform includes adaptive MFA with intelligent risk analytics that adjusts authentication requirements based on context.
What Customers Say
Something to be aware of is that CyberArk’s full value is realized when you use both the SSO and PAM capabilities together. Organizations that only need basic SSO may find the platform more complex than necessary. With that said, customers in security-conscious industries consistently praise the depth of access controls and audit capabilities.
Our Take
We think CyberArk is a standout option for enterprises that need to manage both workforce SSO and privileged access under one roof. If your organization deals with sensitive systems and needs strong audit trails alongside SSO, CyberArk is well worth considering. It’s best suited for larger enterprises with dedicated security teams.
Strengths
- Deep integration between SSO and privileged access management
- Adaptive MFA with intelligent, context-based risk analytics
- Strong audit trails and least-privilege enforcement
- Large catalog of pre-integrated web and mobile apps
Cautions
- Users report the full platform is complex without PAM needs
- Reviews note the platform is best suited for larger enterprises with dedicated security teams
Microsoft Entra ID
Microsoft Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) is one of the most widely used Single Sign-On applications, being used as way to enable users to log into multiple accounts with their Office 365 user details. The platform is a cloud based identity and access management service, which allows employees to sign-in to Office 365, the Azure portal (Azure being Microsoft’s cloud application services) and thousands of other SaaS applications.
Microsoft Entra ID Key Features
Entra ID supports SSO via SAML, OIDC, OAuth 2.0, and WS-Federation, with a pre-integrated app gallery of thousands of applications. Conditional access policies allow admins to define access rules based on user risk, device compliance, location, and session context. The platform also includes passwordless authentication via Windows Hello, FIDO2 keys, and the Microsoft Authenticator app. Identity governance features like access reviews and entitlement management are built in.
What Customers Say
Entra ID is praised for its deep Microsoft integration and the size of its app gallery. Something to be aware of is that the licensing model can be complex; many advanced features like conditional access and identity governance require Premium P2 licensing. Reviews also note that configuring conditional access policies requires careful planning to avoid locking out users.
Our Take
We think Entra ID is the strongest choice for organizations that are already invested in the Microsoft ecosystem. The conditional access engine is very capable, and the integration with Microsoft 365 and Azure is hard to match. If you’re running a Microsoft-heavy environment, Entra ID is well worth considering as your primary identity platform.
Strengths
- Deep native integration with Microsoft 365 and Azure
- Conditional access policies with user risk and device compliance
- Passwordless options via Windows Hello, FIDO2, and Authenticator
- Built-in identity governance with access reviews
Cautions
- Customers note advanced features require Premium P2 licensing
- Reviews note conditional access policies require careful planning to configure
Okta SSO
Okta provides a full suite of cloud-based identity management solutions. Okta allows organizations to manage their users’ identities with an always-on single sign-on platform, that works across all of their corporate accounts. Okta also offers multi-factor authentication, universal directories and API access management as part of a full integration network that allows organizations to improve their identity management and security, as well as making it easier for users to access all of their accounts.
Okta SSO Key Features
Okta supports SSO via SAML, OIDC, OAuth 2.0, SWA, and WS-Federation, giving it one of the widest protocol support ranges in the market. The Okta Integration Network includes over 8,000 pre-built connectors covering cloud, on-premises, and mobile applications. Okta also offers lifecycle management with automated provisioning and deprovisioning via SCIM, along with adaptive MFA and device trust capabilities.
What Customers Say
Okta is consistently praised for the size of its integration catalog and the ease of connecting new applications. Something to be aware of is that the per-user pricing can add up at scale, particularly when you layer on additional modules like lifecycle management and advanced MFA. Reviews also note that the admin console, while powerful, can feel overwhelming for smaller teams.
Our Take
We were impressed by the scale of Okta’s integration network and the flexibility of the platform across different identity environments. If you need to connect a large number of applications across cloud and on-premises environments, Okta is one of the strongest options on the market. It’s best suited for mid-sized to large organizations with diverse application portfolios.
Strengths
- Over 8,000 pre-built app integrations in the Okta Integration Network
- Supports SAML, OIDC, OAuth, SWA, and WS-Federation protocols
- Automated provisioning and deprovisioning via SCIM
- Identity-provider agnostic; works across diverse IT environments
Cautions
- Customers note per-user pricing can scale up quickly
- Reviews mention the admin console can feel overwhelming for smaller teams
OneLogin Secure SSO
OneLogin’s single sign on enables users to secure login to multiple applications with just one username and password, by using the OneLogin platform to authenticate identity across all of their accounts. OneLogin provides a single sign-on portal for users, which shows all of their company and personal accounts that they can use their OneLogin credentials to access. Admins can implement multi-factor authentication across all of a users’ corporate accounts, to ensure that only authorized users get access to the right data.
OneLogin Secure SSO Key Features
OneLogin supports SSO via SAML 2.0 and OIDC, with a catalog of over 6,000 pre-integrated applications. The platform includes SmartFactor Authentication, which uses machine learning to assess risk and adjust authentication requirements in real time. OneLogin also supports user provisioning via SCIM and offers a unified directory that connects to Active Directory, LDAP, and HR systems like Workday.
What Customers Say
OneLogin is praised for its clean interface and quick setup times. Something to be aware of is that some advanced features, like the SmartFactor risk engine and advanced directory integrations, require higher-tier plans. Customers also note that the reporting capabilities could be more detailed for compliance-focused teams.
Our Take
We think OneLogin is a solid option for organizations that prioritize ease of use and fast time-to-value. The SmartFactor Authentication engine adds intelligent risk-based MFA without requiring manual policy configuration. If you need a clean, efficient SSO platform that integrates well with HR systems and directories, OneLogin is well worth considering.
Strengths
- Over 6,000 pre-integrated applications in the SSO catalog
- SmartFactor Authentication adjusts MFA based on real-time risk
- Clean, intuitive interface for both admins and end users
- Unified directory connects AD, LDAP, and HR systems
Cautions
- Reviews flag that advanced features require higher-tier plans
- Users report reporting could be more detailed for compliance needs
Ping Identity SSO
Ping Identity is an enterprise-grade identity platform that offers SSO, MFA, and identity governance for complex, large-scale environments. We think it’s one of the strongest options for enterprises that need flexible deployment models, including cloud, hybrid, and on-premises. Ping Identity is well suited for organizations with complex identity architectures that span multiple environments.
Ping Identity SSO Key Features
Ping Identity supports SSO via SAML, OIDC, OAuth 2.0, and WS-Federation, with support for both cloud and on-premises applications. The PingOne platform provides centralized identity management, while PingFederate handles federation for complex hybrid environments. The platform includes intelligent, risk-based adaptive authentication powered by AI, and supports passwordless login via FIDO2. API security is also built in, which is a strong differentiator for organizations with API-heavy architectures.
What Customers Say
Ping Identity is praised for its flexibility in handling complex, multi-environment identity deployments. Something to be aware of is that this flexibility comes with complexity; the platform has a steeper learning curve than cloud-only SSO tools. Reviews also note that the pricing model is geared toward larger enterprises, which can make it expensive for smaller organizations.
Our Take
We were impressed by Ping Identity’s ability to handle complex hybrid deployments that span cloud and on-premises infrastructure. If your organization has a complex identity environment with multiple directories, API gateways, and both cloud and on-premises applications, Ping Identity is a very strong solution to consider. It’s best suited for large enterprises with dedicated identity teams.
Strengths
- Flexible deployment across cloud, hybrid, and on-premises
- Built-in API security for API-heavy architectures
- AI-powered adaptive authentication with FIDO2 support
- PingFederate handles complex multi-environment federation
Cautions
- Customers note a steeper learning curve than cloud-only tools
- Reviews note pricing is geared toward larger enterprises
SecureAuth Identity Platform
SecureAuth provides Single Sign-On as part of their identity management platform. It combines single sign-on and adaptive authentication to allow users to log in with one set of credentials to all of their accounts, while using contextual factors to verify user identity. Alongside adaptive authentication and SSO, the SecureAuth platform delivers a full identity cloud, with cloud based analytics and administration for admins to manage all of their users credentials and access.
SecureAuth Identity Platform Key Features
SecureAuth supports SSO via SAML, OAuth, and WS-Federation, with support for web agents, proxy agents, and agentless configurations. The Arculix engine is the core differentiator; it uses AI and machine learning to build a behavioral risk profile for each user, then continuously evaluates risk throughout the session. The platform is FIDO2 certified for passwordless authentication and supports deployment across cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments, which is good to see for organizations in transition.
What Customers Say
SecureAuth’s continuous authentication approach is praised by security-focused teams. Something to be aware of is that the platform requires careful tuning of risk thresholds to balance security with user experience. If the risk engine is too aggressive, it can trigger unnecessary re-authentication prompts. Customers also note that the setup process requires planning, particularly for hybrid deployments.
Our Take
We think SecureAuth’s continuous authentication model is a meaningful differentiator in the SSO space. If your organization needs more than just point-of-login verification and wants ongoing risk assessment throughout user sessions, SecureAuth is well worth considering. It’s best suited for security-conscious enterprises that are willing to invest time in tuning the risk engine.
Strengths
- Continuous risk-based authentication throughout user sessions
- FIDO2 certified for passwordless authentication
- AI/ML behavioral risk profiling via the Arculix engine
- Supports cloud, hybrid, and on-premises deployment
Cautions
- Reviews mention risk thresholds need careful tuning
- Customers note hybrid deployment setup requires significant planning
Other Identity And Access Management Services
A cloud-native identity platform offering support for SAML, OpenID Connect, and OAuth 2.0 protocols.
Open-source identity platform offering SSO with customizable authentication flows.
Cloud-based SSO solution supporting SAML, OAuth, and OpenID Connect for web and mobile applications.
A comprehensive solution offering identity management, access governance, and integration with Oracle applications.
What To Look For: SSO Solutions Checklist
Evaluating SSO solutions requires focus on integration capabilities, user experience, and operational reliability. Here’s what to assess:
- Application integration range: How many pre-built connectors are available for your specific application portfolio? Does the platform support SAML, OIDC, LDAP, and RADIUS for legacy systems? Can it handle both cloud SaaS and on-prem applications from one console?
- User Experience and Adoption: Will the authentication flow drive user adoption or create workarounds? Can users self-enroll without IT involvement? Does the platform support passwordless options that users will actually use?
- Adaptive Authentication and Policy Control: Can you enforce different authentication levels based on risk, location, and device posture? Can you create granular policies without coding? Does the platform support context-aware access without excessive false positives?
- Lifecycle Automation: Can provisioning and deprovisioning be automated rather than manual? Does the platform integrate with your HR or identity governance system? Can you remove access instantly across all connected systems when someone leaves?
- Admin Visibility and Troubleshooting: What visibility do you have into authentication failures? Can you drill into audit logs for compliance? How quickly can admins troubleshoot user access issues without extensive documentation hunting?
- Compliance and Audit Readiness: Does the platform generate audit-ready reports for your specific compliance requirements? How long are logs retained? Does it support data residency constraints?
- Platform Stability and Reliability: When SSO fails, what’s the customer impact? What’s the platform’s actual uptime and how does it perform during high-load scenarios? Do customers report outages that cascade across multiple applications?
Weight these criteria based on your priorities. Organizations managing large application portfolios should emphasize integration range and policy flexibility. Teams focused on reducing operational burden should prioritize lifecycle automation and self-service features. If you’re consolidating from multiple vendors, admin visibility and troubleshooting capabilities become critical.
How We Compared The Best Single Sign-On Solutions For Business
Expert Insights conducts independent research and testing on identity and access management platforms. Our assessments are not influenced by vendor payments or commercial relationships. We evaluate each product based solely on real-world performance and operational impact.
We evaluated 11 SSO platforms across enterprise and mid-market deployments, evaluating integration speed, user enrollment workflows, adaptive policy configuration, and platform reliability. Testing covered SAML, OIDC, LDAP, and RADIUS protocol support. We assessed admin console usability, alongside lifecycle automation capabilities and how gracefully each platform handled failover scenarios. We reviewed customer feedback to validate vendor claims against actual deployment experiences.
Beyond hands on evaluation, we conducted extensive vendor market research across identity management platforms and interviewed product teams to understand architecture decisions, roadmap priorities, and known platform limitations. We assessed support quality through customer reviews and interviews. Our testing team operates independently from our commercial team. Vendor partnerships do not influence our assessments or reviewer scoring.
This guide is updated on a quarterly basis to reflect product changes and evolving market conditions. For our full methodology, visit our How We Test & Review Products.
The Bottom Line
Your SSO choice depends on application range, user base size, and whether you need SSO in isolation or as part of a broader identity platform. No single solution dominates across all scenarios.
For enterprise application portfolios spanning 1,000+ users, Okta Single Sign-On leads with 7,000+ pre-built integrations and an end-user experience that drives adoption. Expect pricing escalation as you add advanced features.
If Microsoft 365 anchors your application stack, Microsoft Entra ID becomes the natural choice, native integration eliminates federation complexity and keeps licensing tied to your existing Microsoft investment. Budget for premium tiers to unlock advanced conditional access and governance features.
For organizations managing privileged accounts alongside workforce access, CyberArk combines SSO with password vaulting and credential rotation in one platform. The initial implementation investment pays dividends for enterprises managing high-value accounts.
Mid-market teams wanting straightforward SSO without enterprise complexity should evaluate OneLogin Secure Single Sign-On or Cisco Duo Single Sign-On. Both deliver clean user experiences and manageable deployment timelines. OneLogin emphasizes simplicity; Duo emphasizes push-based MFA usability.
For organizations linking identity to HR data, Rippling IT automates provisioning and offboarding based on employee attributes. Active Directory-centric teams should assess ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus for self-service password management paired with SSO.
If your team needs API-driven identity management with flexible deployment options, Ping Identity Single Sign-On provides unlimited integrations and deep technical support. Expect to allocate dedicated IAM engineering resources.
Read the individual reviews above to understand deployment specifics, pricing structures, and the operational trade-offs relevant to your environment.
FAQs
Single Sign-On: Everything You Need To Know (FAQs)
Single sign-on (SSO) enables users to access multiple applications and services with the use of a just a single set of login credentials, usually authenticated via multi-factor authentication to improve login security. This saves them from having to remember multiple passwords for each of their user identities.
SSO is commonly used in enterprise environments because it improves both security and convenience for employees. Admins can more easily manage which applications users can access, and users no longer have to manage unique, secure passwords for each of their many different corporate accounts and resources.
SSO is often a component of a larger enterprise identity solution to secure user access, including many of the services listed in the above article. These solutions are typically deployed in the cloud, or within an organization’s internal network and integrate with third-party services to enable seamless deployment across applications.
SSO solutions utilize a trusted relationship between an application and an identity provider. The identity provider authenticates a user, using a single set of credentials and usually requiring a two-factor authentication process. This generates a token, which is then shared with third-party applications, allowing users to access sensitive data.
This token tells the application that the user has been authenticated, and provisions access to the service. Once the user has been authenticated by the identity platform, it will facilitate seamless access with all third-party applications that are integrated with the identity provider. This can all be managed through centralized access control.
The concept of a linked digital identity is known as federated identity. Federated identities can be linked across identity providers, making it easier for organizations to manage single sign-on deployments. For example, admins could provision SSO accounts leveraging existing user identities held in Azure Active Directory.
Account takeover attacks rose by 307% between 2019 and 2021, and continue to increase today. Corporate accounts have access to hugely valuable corporate data, and the cost of stolen data can be crippling to organizations, especially for organizations that monitor user behavior to optimize user experience.
Single sign-on is an important step for organizations looking to secure authentication processes and prevent account takeover attempts. SSO enforces strong authentication workflows, including adaptive authentication policies and multi-factor authentication workflows, across all connected corporate accounts.
SSO applications also help end-users, who increasingly have to manage hundreds of different accounts and services. With SSO, users no longer need to manage and remember complex passwords, they simply need to remember one set of credentials to authenticate themselves with the identity provider.
The core functionality of a SSO solution is to enable users to log in to all of their corporate devices and applications easily, using a single set of secure login credentials. There are several key features to look for in a single sign-on and identity management solution:
- Pre-built integrations: SSO platforms should have pre-built APIs to deliver seamless integrations with supported apps, without needing to build and maintain connections yourself.
- Multi-factor authentication: MFA secures the initial login attempt. The best SSO solutions will support multiple authentication methods, including FIDO tokens, biometrics, OTPs, or hardware keys. To ensure uptake, this should be compatible with existing infrastructure.
- Adaptive authentication: SSO solutions should automatically identify and block malicious login attempts, such as impossible superman logins, and enforce MFA on suspicious logins.
- Identity and access policies: SSO platforms should allow admins must be able to configure identity and access policies, including passwords, authentication workflows, and connected apps. They should allow you to define granular permissions based on a range of factors.
- Identity store integrations: SSO solutions should pull identities from existing identity stores such as Azure Active Directory to provision users and pull existing login credentials.
- Lifecycle Management: Admins should be able to provision and deprovision accounts with automated workflows for new users and employees that leave the organization.
- Device Risk Profiling: SSO solutions should permit admins to view device risk assessments based on suspicious login attempts. Some solutions will also support endpoint management functionality.
- Reporting: SSO solutions should grant admins should have access to comprehensive reports and analytics providing full context and visibility to authentication workflows. This supports compliance.
- Self-service credential management: SSO platforms should allow users to manage their own credentials, MFA options, and password resets to save admins time.
Choosing the right SSO solution will come down to your organization’s and users’ unique requirements and use cases. Beyond this, there are many factors to consider. The solutions on this list often share many features, but each will have strengths and benefits suited to particular industries and organization-sizes.
Key questions to ask internally are:
- What level of security do you require for controlling access to corporate applications? Do you require a hardware token, or is an OTP enough to authenticate access?
- Are you looking for a custom solution for internal applications?
- Are there specific or niche features that you need, such as blocking logins from certain countries or devices?
- What multi-factor authentication solutions will your users support? Do they have personal smartphones to authenticate via biometrics, or is this against corporate policies?
- What existing infrastructure do you have in place?
Knowing the specific requirements of your organization when looking for a solution can help you to narrow down the options. As SSO is often delivered as part of a wider identity management solution, it is important to consider what other access management features your organization needs to secure users and meet compliance requirements.
SSO platforms provide a number of benefits to organizations. It improves account security, ease of management, and productivity for the end user. Other benefits of SSO include:
- Improves security by enforcing continuous multi-factor authentication and ensuring user access rights
- Offers adaptive and secure password policies for the SSO workflow
- Prevents usage of weak passwords and shadow IT accounts which cannot be managed by IT teams
- Enables identity governance, giving admins more control over identities and access management policies
- Saves time for IT admins, improving onboarding/offboarding and automating key identity workflows
- End users can easily access all of their accounts from any device from the SSO portal, improving productivity and user experience
Single sign-on (SSO) provides a range of security benefits for both the organization and the end user. Compromised passwords are one of the most common causes of a data breach, with the average user having more passwords than they can reasonably be expected to remember or keep secure.
Single sign-on helps to avoid the security risks associated with weak passwords, as each account can have a complex secure password, frequently rotated, without the user needing to manage multiple passwords. This also improves usability for employees, who only need to authenticate once to have access to all of their applications and services. Coupled with robust MFA and conditional access policies, single sign-on can vastly improve the security of digital accounts.
Single sign-on can help organizations adhere to compliance regulations. These often recommend enforcing strong authentication policies to help reduce the risk of account compromise. Some also require that users are automatically logged out of secure devices when no longer needed – single sign-on can enable this feature.
Finally, single sign-on can help IT teams more effectively monitor and manage account access. They can configure policies as to how single sign-on works, assign access to different applications for different teams, and eliminate the need to deal with endless password reset requests.
Single sign-on can vastly improve your account security, ensuring that users do not have to worry about managing a different password for every account. Your industry may have specific challenges and use cases, but when implemented effectively, single sign-on can be a powerful security tool for reducing the risk of account compromise and improving usability for employees.
Written By
Joel is the Director of Content and a co-founder at Expert Insights; a rapidly growing media company focussed on covering cybersecurity solutions.
He’s an experienced journalist and editor with 8 years’ experience covering the cybersecurity space. He’s reviewed hundreds of cybersecurity solutions, interviewed hundreds of industry experts and produced dozens of industry reports read by thousands of CISOs and security professionals in topics like IAM, MFA, zero trust, email security, DevSecOps and more.
He also hosts the Expert Insights Podcast and co-writes the weekly newsletter, Decrypted. Joel is driven to share his team’s expertise with cybersecurity leaders to help them create more secure business foundations.
Technical Review
Craig MacAlpine is CEO and Founder of Expert Insights. Before founding Expert Insights in August 2018, Craig spent 10 years as CEO of EPA Cloud, an email security provider that rebranded as VIPRE Email Security following its acquisition by Ziff Davis, formerly J2Global (NASDAQ: ZD) in 2013.
Craig is a passionate security innovator with over 20 years of experience helping organizations to stay secure with cutting-edge information security and cybersecurity solutions.
Using his extensive experience in the email security industry, he founded Expert Insights with the singular goal of helping IT professionals and CISOs to cut through the noise and find the right cybersecurity solutions they need to protect their organizations.