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This episode and the Identity at the Center podcast is supported by CrowdStrike. Learn more at crowdstrike.com.Jeff Steadman and Jim McDonald sit down with Scott Kriz, GM of Continuous Identity at CrowdStrike, for a deep dive into continuous identity, zero standing access, and the convergence of identity and security. Scott traces his path from co-founding Bitium, to selling it to Google Cloud, to building SGNL and ultimately joining CrowdStrike. The conversation covers how continuous identity works in practice, why traditional PAM and IGA fall short in a real-time world, and what the rise of agentic AI means for identity governance at scale. Connect with Scott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottkriz/Learn more about Crowdstrike: https://www.crowdstrike.com/en-us/platform/next-gen-identity-security/caep/?idacConnect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.com00:00:00 Introduction and welcome00:01:21 How Scott got into identity and co-founded Bitium00:03:55 Selling to Google Cloud and the inspiration for SGNL00:05:02 Continuous identity and zero standing access explained00:09:13 Defining continuous identity at CrowdStrike00:10:20 How continuous identity differs from PAM and IGA00:15:06 Data as the foundation for continuous identity00:19:29 Open ecosystems, Shared Signals Framework, and CAEP00:25:26 Agents, identity chaining, SPIFFE, SPIRE, and MCP gateways00:33:02 Identity inside CrowdStrike's broader security strategy00:37:27 Identity security budgets and ROI-driven purchasing00:40:04 Agentic scale and the need for automated identity controls00:43:39 The SGNL acquisition: what it means for both companies00:50:25 Zero trust as a real architectural framework00:54:00 Helicopter skiing, avalanches, and staying presentKeywords: IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald, Scott Kriz, CrowdStrike, SGNL, continuous identity, zero standing access, PAM, IGA, zero trust, agentic AI, non-human identity, NHI, SPIFFE, SPIRE, MCP, identity security, real-time authorization, cybersecurity

Jeff and Jim recap their week at KuppingerCole's EIC 2026 in Berlin, covering standout keynotes, hallway conversations, and sessions on securing AI agents, CIAM, and AI versus nuclear regulation. They announce a giveaway of Eve Maler's signed copy of Mastering Digital Identity for YouTube commenters by June 12th. The episode also features live footage and a full interview with Espen Bago, founder of IdentiBeer, recorded at the Berlin event. Jeff, Jim, and Espen discuss the rapid global growth of the IdentiBeer community, terminology challenges around NHI and IAM concepts, the gap between conference talk and real client needs, and why the industry keeps bypassing foundational data work in the rush toward AI and agentic identity.Connect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.com00:00:10 Welcome and EIC 2026 Setup00:03:57 Eve Maler Book Giveaway Details00:05:00 Conference Highlights: Keynotes and Hallway Con00:06:07 Elizabeth Garber's Standing Ovation Keynote00:07:02 Brazil Invitation and Securing AI Agents00:09:10 Nuclear Regulation vs. AI Regulation00:11:07 Upcoming EIC Episode Preview00:14:16 IdentiBeer Berlin Live Event00:14:29 Interview with Espen Bago Begins00:15:14 IdentiBeer Growth and Global Expansion00:17:23 The IdentiBeer Name Debate00:23:26 Data Quality Gaps in NHI and IAM00:26:31 Who Owns IAM Terminology?00:34:20 Conference Talk vs. Client Reality00:40:52 The HR-IAM Gap Nobody Talks About00:43:17 Fundamentals: The Karate Kid AnalogyKeywords: EIC 2026, European Identity Conference, IdentiBeer, Espen Bago, Eve Maler, Elizabeth Garber, Mastering Digital Identity, Berlin, Identiverse, NHI, non-human identities, IAM fundamentals, AI regulation, agentic identity, IGA, PAM, CIAM, IDPro, identity community, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald

Jeff and Jim are back with the May 2026 mailbag, answering listener questions from Amsterdam, Mumbai, Austin, and Berlin. Topics include navigating IAM vendor acquisitions, defending against AI deepfakes in remote onboarding, governing contractor and third-party identities, fixing the leaver process in IGA, and tackling a decade of IAM technical debt. The episode closes with unpopular industry opinions: why RFPs are procurement theater, why rip and replace should be normalized, and why one-throat-to-choke vendor thinking usually backfires.IDPro new member discount: https://idpro.org/idac/Connect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.comCHAPTER TIMESTAMPS00:00 Intro and SNL nostalgia03:25 AI model roundup: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and usage limits10:16 Identiverse 2026 and IDPro member discount14:53 Q1: Navigating vendor acquisitions (Isabelle, Amsterdam)24:00 Q2: AI deepfakes in identity verification (Rajan, Mumbai)32:32 Q3: Contractor and third-party identity governance (Caleb, Austin)43:00 Q4: The leaver process and IGA scope gaps (Anonymous)51:10 Q5: Tackling IAM technical debt (Tomas, Berlin)57:00 Normalizing rip and replace01:01:00 RFPs, one throat to choke, and other hot takes01:08:00 Wrap-upKEYWORDSIAM, identity governance, IGA, vendor consolidation, acquisitions, deepfakes, identity verification, contractor management, non-employee identity, technical debt, rip and replace, RFP, joiner mover leaver, leaver process, Identiverse 2026, IDPro, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald

Jeff and Jim welcome back Robert Snodgrass, Principal at RSM, for a deep dive into the RSM Middle Market Business Index cybersecurity report. The conversation covers the confidence gap facing middle market organizations, why digital identity remains undervalued despite being the primary attack surface, non-human identity governance, flat cybersecurity budgets, risk framework adoption, and what good incident response preparedness actually looks like. The episode wraps with a spirited Bitcoin Pizza Day toppings debate.Connect with Robert: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-snodgrass-7a199412/Review the RSM US Middle Market Business Index Special Report on Cybersecurity 2026: https://rsmus.com/middle-market/cybersecurity-mmbi.html?cmpid=ola:45559-idac:bb01IDPro new member discount: https://idpro.org/idac/Connect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.comTIMESTAMPS00:00:00 Introduction and Scatter Spider social engineering discussion00:04:00 IDPro discount code and upcoming conferences00:06:26 Guest intro: Robert Snodgrass and the MMBI report00:09:05 Defining the modern middle market00:12:00 The confidence gap: 96% confident, 18% breached00:15:04 Why attackers log in and top identity investment priorities00:19:00 Why only 23% of leaders prioritize digital identity00:22:00 Internal partnerships as the path to identity program success00:25:10 AI, shadow AI, and non-human identity risks00:31:00 NHI governance at scale: 45 to 1 ratio00:34:50 Cybersecurity budget realities in the middle market00:39:00 EU regulation and top-line cybersecurity drivers00:42:03 NIST CSF adoption and risk framework value00:46:00 Incident response planning: the two-minute drill00:52:16 Bitcoin Pizza Day and closing thoughtsKEYWORDSidentity security, middle market, cybersecurity, MMBI, RSM, Robert Snodgrass, phishing-resistant MFA, non-human identities, NHI, shadow AI, incident response, NIST CSF, IAM, identity governance, ransomware, tabletop exercises, digital identity, cybersecurity budget, identity program, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald

Episode 422 is the debut of Decoded by Identity at the Center, a new sub-series hosted by Jeff Steadman and Sean O'Dell dedicated to unpacking the specifications and standards powering IAM. Joining them is Pieter Kasselman, VP of Open Standards at Defakto and chair of the WIMSE working group. The conversation covers why traditional non-human identity approaches break at agentic scale, how SPIFFE and SPIRE enable short-lived automated credential provisioning without long-lived secrets, and why treating agents as workloads unlocks a decade of existing standards. Pieter walks through critical OAuth specs including JWT authorization grant, token exchange, client ID metadata, and the emerging transaction tokens draft. Sean connects these to practical gateway architecture, continuous access evaluation, and policy-based authorization. The episode closes with real-world deployment examples and a clear takeaway: the tools to secure agentic identity are available today.Episode Links:Pieter Kasselman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pieter-kasselman-0259862/AI Agent Authentication and Authorization: https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-klrc-aiagent-auth/Workload Identity in Multi-system environments (WIMSE): https://ietf-wg-wimse.github.io/OAuth SPIFFE Client Authentication: https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-ietf-oauth-spiffe-client-auth/Transaction Tokens: https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-ietf-oauth-transaction-tokens/08/Agentic Identity Control Framework. You Already Have the Pieces. Now Build It. by Sean O'Dell: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/agentic-identity-control-framework-you-already-have-pieces-o-dell-61b5e/Timestamps:00:00 Introduction to Decoded by Identity at the Center00:13 The mission of the Decoded sub-series03:02 Guest intro: Pieter Kasselman, VP of Open Standards at Defakto06:21 Why agentic identity is urgent: scale, multi-platform, and shifting threat landscape10:42 The real cost of API keys and credential sprawl in agentic systems13:23 Agentic identity identifiers and how SPIFFE assigns unique workload IDs21:00 Credential types: X.509, JWTs, and workload identity tokens31:00 Connecting SPIFFE to OAuth and dynamic registration with client ID metadata38:18 SPIFFE SVIDs, multiple credentials per agent, and governance traceability41:44 Authentication versus authorization: delegation versus impersonation47:00 Transaction tokens: binding access to specific transactions to stop token theft51:21 Identity chaining and cross-domain authorization55:00 Shared Signals Framework and dynamic authorization57:00 Gateways, CAEP, and mid-flight token revocation for rogue agents59:31 What you can deploy today with SPIFFE, OAuth, and existing IDPs01:02:58 Policy-based access control and why instance-level governance cannot scale01:04:58 Workload identity federation: Anthropic and Google Agent ID updates01:07:13 Cross-platform federation and the law of agentic utility01:11:55 Elevator pitch: agents are workloads and 95% of the problem is solved now01:17:03 What is coming next: a transaction tokens deep diveKeywords:agentic identity, SPIFFE, SPIRE, OAuth, transaction tokens, Shared Signals Framework, WIMSE, workload identity, non-human identity, authorization delegation, JWT, CAEP, API gateway, IAM standards, AIMS, Jeff Steadman, Sean O'Dell, Pieter Kasselman, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jim McDonald, Decoded by Identity at the CenterDecoded by Identity at the Center:Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Sean O'Dell: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanodentity/Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Visit the show on the web at https://idacdecoded.com/

Jeff and Jim welcome back Henrique Teixeira, SVP of Strategy at Saviynt, for his fourth appearance on the podcast. The episode opens with Jim's firsthand experience building an AI agent for a work project and discovering in real time how identity management challenges surface in the agentic era. After conference updates on EIC in Berlin and Identiverse in Las Vegas, Henrique unpacks the crowded terminology around AI agent governance, from Gartner's agent management platforms to UADP, the Unified Agentic Defense Platform. He proposes a three-pillar framework for managing AI and non-human identities: discovery, identity lifecycle and governance, and runtime access management, with guidance on where to start depending on whether your organization is greenfield or legacy-heavy. The conversation then examines how AI is reshaping the analyst business model, what makes information sources trustworthy, and how proprietary inquiry data forms the real competitive moat for firms like Gartner and Forrester. The episode closes with a wide-ranging discussion on AI's risk to shared cultural experiences, hyper-personalized entertainment, and the ethics of licensing your digital identity in the afterlife.Connect with Henrique: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bernardes/Connect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.com00:00:00 Intro00:00:55 Jim's AI Agent Experiment and Identity Lessons00:06:04 Conference News: EIC and Identiverse00:07:22 Identity Beer Community Events00:08:40 Introducing Henrique Teixeira00:12:00 AI Control Plane: Competing Terminologies00:17:36 Three Pillars of AI Agent Identity Management00:18:46 Why Visibility Matters More for NHI00:20:00 Ownership, Accountability, and Humans at the Control Plane00:24:26 Industry Maturity and the Gaps That Remain00:25:41 Where to Start: Governance-First vs. Visibility-First00:29:52 AI's Impact on the Analyst Profession00:34:57 What Analyst Firms Have That AI Cannot Replace00:39:04 Trust, Boutique Analysts, and Repeatability00:44:34 Proprietary AI Chatbots and Gated Intelligence00:49:30 IP Rights and the Legal Gray Zone of AI Training00:52:14 AI and the Erosion of Shared Cultural Experience00:58:00 AI Music, Personalized Entertainment, and the Future of Art01:03:47 Digital Afterlife, Voice Clones, and AI Personas01:08:18 Wrap-Up and ClosingKeywords: IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald, Henrique Teixeira, Saviynt, AI identity control plane, non-human identities, NHI, agentic AI, AI agents, AI governance, identity lifecycle, access management, discovery, agent management platform, UADP, IAM, Gartner, analyst firms, AI and culture, digital identity, identity security, EIC, Identiverse, identity beer

This episode is made possible by GitGuardian. Jeff speaks with Dwayne McDaniel, Principal Developer Advocate at GitGuardian, about secrets sprawl, non-human identity governance, and the findings of the State of Secret Sprawl 2026 report. With 28.6 million secrets leaked to public GitHub in 2025 - a 34% year-over-year increase - they explore why hardcoded credentials persist, how agentic AI tools are making the problem worse, and what IAM practitioners can do to start addressing machine identity governance. Topics include GitGuardian's Good Samaritan notification program, the growing NHI inventory challenge, SPIFFE and SPIRE as a path to zero standing privilege, and data showing Claude Code co-authored commits are more than twice as likely to contain leaked secrets. Visit gitguardian.com/lps/idac to learn more.Connect with Dwayne: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dwaynemcdaniel/Dwayne's website: https://dwayne-mcdaniel.com/Learn more about GitGuardian: https://www.gitguardian.com/lps/idacGitGuardian Good Samaritan Program (free) - https://www.gitguardian.com/good-samaritanThe State of Secrets Sprawl 2026: https://www.gitguardian.com/state-of-secrets-sprawl-report-2026SPIFFE Book: https://spiffe.io/book/Connect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.comTIMESTAMPS:00:00 Introduction and sponsor welcome00:48 Dwayne's background and path to developer advocacy04:11 Surprises from entering the identity and security space06:29 What a principal developer advocate actually does09:32 Why secrets became Dwayne's focus area14:10 GitGuardian: overview and mission19:36 Where secrets commonly leak across the SDLC22:17 The Good Samaritan notification program explained28:00 Why 70% of leaked secrets from 2022 were still valid in 202533:54 State of Secret Sprawl 2026: the year software changed40:39 AI coding tools, Claude Code, and secrets leakage data47:28 Practical questions for IAM practitioners to start asking52:24 Zero standing privilege and the case for SPIFFE/SPIRE01:00:00 Resources: the SPIFFE book, WIMSE, and AWS STS01:02:51 Hot sauce, the Cubs, and closing thoughtsKEYWORDS:secrets sprawl, hardcoded secrets, non-human identity, NHI governance, GitGuardian, SPIFFE, SPIRE, workload identity, DevSecOps, agentic AI, Claude Code, zero standing privilege, supply chain security, credential abuse, identity and access management, IAM, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald, Dwayne McDaniel

Recorded live as part of the Identity Management Day 2026 streaming program, Jeff and Jim mark their fifth IMD episode. Introduced by Jeff Reich from the Identity Defined Security Alliance, they reflect on how the IAM industry has evolved since their first IMD episode in 2021 and grade overall progress a C. Topics include what has genuinely improved (passkeys, MFA adoption, broader awareness), what hasn't (compliance fatigue, security theater, persistent credential theft), the exploding challenge of non-human identity governance, whether AI will eventually need to certify other AI, and how AI-powered phishing and deep fakes are raising the bar for identity verification. The episode wraps with chat-submitted IAM bumper stickers.Identity Management Day 2026: https://www.idsalliance.org/event/identity-management-day-2026/Connect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.comCHAPTERS0:00 - Jeff Reich intro from the IMD stream2:00 - Identity Management Day 2026 kicks off3:30 - Five years of IMD: a look back at episode 887:00 - Does IMD move the needle?9:30 - Who is Identity Management Day actually for?12:00 - What has improved in IAM over five years16:00 - What hasn't improved: compliance fatigue and security theater18:30 - Grading the IAM industry21:00 - NHI governance: visibility and accountability26:00 - Can AI certify AI? Agentic identity governance29:00 - AI-powered phishing and the evolving threat landscape32:00 - Deep fakes and the identity verification challenge36:00 - Lighter note: IAM bumper stickersKEYWORDSidentity management day, identity management day 2026, NHI, non-human identity, agentic AI, phishing, deep fakes, IGA, passkeys, MFA, IAM, identity governance, access management, cybersecurity, credential theft, security awareness, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald

What does it mean to build an identity system that is ethical? Jim McDonald and Jeff Steadman are joined by Elizabeth Garber, Executive Director of IDPro and marketing lead for the OpenID Foundation, for a conversation spanning ethics in digital identity, the tension between privacy and safety, biometric exclusion risks, and how practitioners can use structured frameworks to navigate these discussions productively. Elizabeth shares her three-part career journey, the latest from the IDPro community, and previews her upcoming keynotes at EIC Berlin and Identiverse Las Vegas.Connect with Elizabeth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethgarberIDPro Discount - New members get $25 off their first year of membership: https://idpro.org/idac/Ethics and Digital Identity by Henk Marsman: https://bok.idpro.org/article/id/104/Ethics for Digital Identity and Identity-Driven Algorithms by Mike Kiser: https://bok.idpro.org/article/id/105/Human Centric Digital Identity white paper: https://openid.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Human-Centric_Digital_Identity_Final-v1.1.pdfConnect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at http://idacpodcast.comTimestamps:00:00 Intro and Jim's allergy research03:42 Conference announcements: EIC and Identiverse06:00 Welcome Elizabeth Garber07:04 Elizabeth's three-part origin story11:55 IDPro mission and the identity community18:13 Membership, CIDPRO certification, and the Body of Knowledge21:17 IDPro Slack community23:40 IdentiBeer and local meetups26:26 IDPro listener discount at idpro.org/idac29:00 Operationalizing ideas in IAM32:19 Ethics in the IDPro Body of Knowledge33:30 Defining ethics in technology34:19 The trolley problem and moral consistency37:10 Big tech, privacy, and law enforcement39:28 Where practitioners start with ethics43:30 Biometric exclusion and the Uganda story49:00 Privacy vs. safety: a false choice?53:48 The case for consistent ethical frameworks57:53 Elizabeth's EIC and Identiverse talks59:49 Improv comedy and expensive hobbies1:07:25 Wrap-upKeywords: ethical IAM, digital identity ethics, IDPro, identity and access management, privacy, safety, biometrics, exclusion, Elizabeth Garber, GAIN Digital Trust, OpenID Foundation, Body of Knowledge, Ethical Canvas, zero knowledge proofs, passkeys, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald, EIC Berlin, Identiverse

This bonus episode of Identity at the Center is brought to you with support from Elimity. Jeff and Jim sit down with Maarten Decat, co-founder and CEO of Elimity, to explore the emerging product category known as IVIP, Identity Visibility and Intelligence Platforms. Maarten explains how Elimity was built around a question every IAM practitioner eventually faces: who can actually do what within our organization? The conversation covers why IVIP is distinct from traditional IGA, how identity data graphs provide deeper visibility than flat entitlement lists, and what regulatory drivers like SOC 2, ISO 27001, and DORA are pushing organizations toward this space. They also discuss deployment patterns, integration approaches, ROI metrics for leadership, and what Maarten calls provable control. The episode closes with a memorable story about Elimity branded Belgian beer and a very formal legal letter. Learn more at elimity.com/idac.Connect with Maarten: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maartendecat/Learn more about Elimity: https://elimity.com/idacConnect with us on LinkedIn:Jim McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmcdonaldpmp/Jeff Steadman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsteadman/Visit the show on the web at idacpodcast.comCHAPTER TIMESTAMPS00:00 Introduction and ax-throwing memories from EIC Berlin01:35 Introducing Maarten Decat, co-founder and CEO of Elimity01:57 How identity chose Maarten: from PhD to startup founder03:09 The Elimity origin story and the problem it set out to solve04:52 Defining IVIP: Identity Visibility and Intelligence Platforms05:31 Where did the name Elimity come from?06:57 Why identity visibility has become a security priority now09:02 What organizations were doing before IVIP existed11:16 Can IGA do what IVIP does? Addressing the skeptics14:20 The identity data graph: deeper and wider than IGA16:20 IVIP and IGA as complementary tools, not competitors16:49 What falls outside IVIP scope: automated provisioning18:01 IVIP as the intelligence layer in your IAM stack19:45 What data sources connect into an IVIP platform21:44 Extending visibility to non-human identities22:00 M&A use cases: gaining visibility across two organizations23:55 IVIP and the identity fabric concept25:18 Visibility, intelligence, and actions: building the right stack26:36 How deployments typically start and what early wins look like28:44 Integration approaches and realistic effort timelines32:00 What success looks like at six to twelve months36:07 Metrics and ROI: talking to leadership about identity risk38:14 Case studies and customer examples on the Elimity website38:58 What every IAM practitioner should know about IVIP40:12 Elimity's global reach: EU, US, and Middle East41:42 The Elimity branded beer story and a very formal legal letter46:43 Wrap-up and final thoughtsKEYWORDSIVIP, identity visibility and intelligence platforms, IGA, identity governance, access control, identity data graph, Elimity, Maarten Decat, non-human identities, access risk, provable control, SOC 2, ISO 27001, DORA, CCPA, cybersecurity, PAM, IAM, identity and access management, EIC, IDAC, Identity at the Center, Jeff Steadman, Jim McDonald