Security is a top priority when installing identity solutions

According to a new survey 78 percent of organizations say that security outweighs cost savings and user experience when choosing identity management solutions.

The survey by access control specialist SecureAuth used responses from over 230 IT security professionals in the US and UK.

When asked why their company has initiated new identity projects in the past, 55 percent of respondents across small, medium and large companies say the deployment of new applications -- including both on-premises and cloud-based -- was the top driver. Board and senior management's drive for increased security is also cited by 50 percent of respondents as a chief reason for new identity project initiation, underscoring that cyber security has become a board-level concern.

Other drivers for installing identity management include compliance and audit requirements at 49 percent, cost savings (44 percent), security breaches at another company (36 percent), increased use of stolen or misused credentials (34 percent) and the company itself experiencing a security breach (25 percent).

"It's no secret that security has become a board room-level imperative," says Craig Lund, CEO of SecureAuth. "A decade ago, it was a nice to have; today, it's a must have. Accordingly, organizations across the globe are abandoning their laissez-faire approaches to cybersecurity and significantly increasing security spending for the coming years. Worthwhile cybersecurity endeavors may require some redirection of budget, but in this day and age, proactivity is just as important as reactivity".

When asked about their plans for identity and access management, 79 percent of respondents say that plans are underway for IAM of externally focused applications, including vendor, partner and customer applications, portals and mobile apps. In addition 47 percent say that IAM investment is a currently funded priority, 32 percent will invest in the next year, and 13 percent will invest in IAM, but don't have a specific time frame.

For more information you can visit the SecureAuth blog.

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