The Future of CIAM: Three Key Trends

Read on to know about the top trends in customer identity and access management (CIAM).

11:02 28 September 2021

In 2021, technology is developing apace. Though we might once have been startled by the rapidity of its evolution, this has become the new normal, forcing businesses to work harder to stay abreast and meet customer expectations. There’s no time for being lackadaisical, and that applies to the protection of personal information as much as anything else. As security threats become more innovative, so too must the solutions that are aimed at preventing them.

 

This is where customer identity and access management (CIAM) come into play. What is CIAM, you may ask? This is a class of software that enables companies to authenticate customers, manage digital identities, and control access to digital and non-digital resources. Its aim, quite simply, is to keep consumers safe online using multi-channel authentication. We take a look at the trends defining it in 2021.   

 

Improved Customer Engagement

Customer-facing organisations are under continual pressure to improve user interactions with their brand. Little wonder, then, that this is one of the key trends influencing the CIAM sector. What developers want is for users to engage with their product and to deliver a premium customer experience. This begins with building trust. One of the most effective ways to do this is to request information incrementally. Businesses don’t want to seem either intrusive or overly difficult to engage with. As customers are often lost during a tricky registration process, it’s important to simplify touchpoints from start to finish. Remember, you want to engage but not too early. Timing is crucial.    

 

Improved Security Outcomes

This should not be the only area of focus for businesses looking to improve their CIAM offerings. At its core, this software is primarily concerned with keeping customers safe and that means covering your security bases. Multi-factor authentication should now be offered as a matter of course, but this in itself is not enough, especially if you give customers the choice of whether or not to use it (we recommend you do). Instead, it’s important to incorporate additional security controls that are not reliant on customer input. This combination of flexibility and intuition is the piece de resistance for CIAM solutions. This means, for example, that while it might be sensible to implement multi-factor authentication during a transaction or if a user logs in from an unfamiliar device, less stringent measures should be adopted on other occasions.

 

Enhanced User Privacy  

There are also laws in place that make user privacy paramount. These include, for example, the General Data Protection Regulation, which has put customer control over data at the forefront of the conversation. Not only has this brought it into the public gaze but it’s created a situation in which businesses must be especially careful when collecting, handling, and storing information. This has affected many sectors, including advertising and social media, and almost every company will be impacted to some degree. As a result, businesses need to understand and adhere to their obligations. They can manifest compliance in several ways, including through cookie consent prompts and preference management, to provide a premier CIAM offering that stays on the right side of the legal line.

 

The future of CIAM is defined by many external factors, from customer expectations to security considerations and compliance requirements. By keeping your finger on the pulse, you can deliver the best possible service and safeguard the future of your business.