Which IAM concept enables SSO-like access to external resources across organizational boundaries?

Which IAM concept enables SSO-like access to external resources across organizational boundaries?

• A. Authentication Standards
• B. Federated Access
• C. Service Provider (SP)
• D. Identity Types

Answer: (B)

Federated access is the mechanism that enables SSO-like access to resources across organizational boundaries by establishing trust between separate organizations’ identity providers and the services they use. When a user from one organization tries to reach a resource in another, the resource defers authentication to the user’s home organization. That organization issues a trusted assertion or token, which the resource accepts to grant access, often without prompting for new credentials. This approach is typically implemented with protocols such as SAML, OpenID Connect, or WS-Federation, and it relies on agreed-upon trust relationships and attribute sharing. It reduces password sprawl and provides seamless access across partner systems, but it also requires strong IdP security and proper governance to protect and validate the assertions being exchanged. The other options don’t describe cross-organizational single sign-on. Authentication standards cover how identity is verified but not the cross-domain trust and sharing required for SSO across boundaries. A service provider is the resource that consumes the authentication assertion, not the mechanism enabling cross-domain access. Identity types refer to what kinds of identities exist, not the process that enables access across organizations.

Federated access is the mechanism that enables SSO-like access to resources across organizational boundaries by establishing trust between separate organizations’ identity providers and the services they use. When a user from one organization tries to reach a resource in another, the resource defers authentication to the user’s home organization. That organization issues a trusted assertion or token, which the resource accepts to grant access, often without prompting for new credentials.

This approach is typically implemented with protocols such as SAML, OpenID Connect, or WS-Federation, and it relies on agreed-upon trust relationships and attribute sharing. It reduces password sprawl and provides seamless access across partner systems, but it also requires strong IdP security and proper governance to protect and validate the assertions being exchanged.

The other options don’t describe cross-organizational single sign-on. Authentication standards cover how identity is verified but not the cross-domain trust and sharing required for SSO across boundaries. A service provider is the resource that consumes the authentication assertion, not the mechanism enabling cross-domain access. Identity types refer to what kinds of identities exist, not the process that enables access across organizations.