Identity Defined Security Alliance

What Identity Defined Security Alliance does

The Identity Defined Security Alliance (IDSA) is a U.S.-based nonprofit corporation formed in January 2019 and headquartered in New Braunfels, Texas. It operates as a vendor-neutral industry alliance that produces educational frameworks, research, events, and working-group programs on identity-centric security — the discipline of using validated, protected identities to gate access to enterprise resources. Its flagship intellectual property is the Identity Defined Security Framework, a structured set of Best Practices and Security Outcomes and Approaches covering identity lifecycle, identity governance, privileged access management, cloud infrastructure entitlement management, and customer IAM. The framework is supported by annual "Trends in Securing Digital Identities" research (published 2021–2025) and a content library of white papers, case studies, ebooks, broadcasts, and blog posts distributed through idsalliance.org and a BrightTALK channel.

IDSA serves three member constituencies through a four-tier subscription model: Contributor ($250/year) for individual practitioners, Corporate ($5,000/year) for end-user organizations, and Partner and Vendor (each $10,000/year) for security vendors and identity technology providers. Roughly 25+ named member companies participate, including SailPoint, CyberArk, Okta, Saviynt, BeyondTrust, Palo Alto Networks, Adobe, LogRhythm, Axonius, Aembit, and Permiso. Beyond membership dues, revenue comes from event sponsorships around two flagship events — Identity Management Day (annual since 2021, co-organized with the National Cybersecurity Alliance) and the newly launched NHIcon (inaugurated January 2025, focused on non-human identity and agentic AI security). Working groups cover AI and Identity, Machine and Agent Identity, CIEM, CIAM, and Zero Trust, with regional co-chairs spanning the Americas, EMEA, and Oceania-Asia.

IDSA is governed by a two-year-term Executive Advisory Board, led since 2023 by Executive Director Jeff Reich (CISSP, ISSA Hall of Fame inductee) alongside Operations Director Courtney Keogh. The organization owns the registered "Identity Defined Security™" trademark and holds no disclosed funding rounds, acquisitions, or parent organization — operating as an independent member-funded nonprofit with global content reach across web, BrightTALK, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, and Mastodon.

Name

Identity Defined Security Alliance

Legal name

Identity Defined Security Alliance

Website

https://idsalliance.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Identity Defined Security Alliance (IDSA) is a U.S.-based nonprofit founded in 2019 that provides vendor-neutral identity-security education, frameworks, research, and events for identity practitioners, enterprise security leaders, and member vendors including SailPoint, CyberArk, and Okta.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cybersecurity Education and Identity Security Resources

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Identity & Access Security Services (IAM, PAM, Zero Trust) (BPAKAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Identity Orchestration & Policy (Zero Trust Access, Conditional Access) (HDADAAAL), Identity Governance & Administration (IGA) (HDAEAJAE), Identity Threat Detection & Response (ITDR) (HDAEAJAH)

Keywords

• Identity security education
• Identity management resources
• Cybersecurity best practices
• Zero trust frameworks
• Identity-defined security

Headquarters

HQ city

New Braunfels

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from Corporate, Contributor, Partner, and Vendor members. Revenue supports organization operations, working groups, events, and content development.
2. Event Sponsorships: Revenue from event sponsorships for Identity Management Day, NHIcon, and other events. Sponsors include member companies and partners.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Identity Defined Security Alliance (IDSA) is a nonprofit organization that provides vendor-neutral educational resources, frameworks, and community programs on identity-centric security. Its core deliverable is the Identity Defined Security Framework, comprising Best Practices and Security Outcomes and Approaches, distributed through white papers, research reports, broadcasts, webinars, working groups, and signature events (Identity Management Day and NHIcon). Revenue is generated via tiered annual memberships and event sponsorships.

Product overview

The Identity Defined Security Alliance (IDSA) is a nonprofit alliance (formed January 2019) that provides free vendor-neutral education, resources, and frameworks rather than a commercial software product. The core offering is the Identity Defined Security Framework, which comprises Best Practices and Security Outcomes and Approaches for implementing identity-centric security. IDSA supports this through educational programs (Identity Defined Security 101), annual research publications (Trends in Securing Digital Identities reports), technical working groups (AI and Identity, CIEM, CIAM, Zero Trust), and events (Identity Management Day and NHIcon). Content is delivered through broadcasts, webinars, white papers, ebooks, infographics, and blog articles. The organization facilitates community collaboration among identity and security vendors and practitioners through membership programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Contributor Membership Annual membership priced at $250 for individual practitioners and self-employed end users whose primary business is not selling security products and services. Includes participation in two Technical Working Group subcommittees, quarterly Customer Advisory Board roundtables, Speakers Bureau eligibility, and CPE credits for ISC2 members.
• Corporate Membership Annual membership priced at $5,000 for organizations whose primary business is not selling security products and services. Includes participation in up to four Technical Working Group subcommittees, two TWG workshops per year, quarterly customer advisory board roundtables, listing on the IDSA website, four individuals eligible for Speakers Bureau, and CPE credits for ISC2 members.
• Partner Membership Annual membership priced at $10,000 (first year prorated quarterly) for organizations whose primary business is selling security products and services. Includes working group participation, website listing, thought leadership blog access, IDSA social channel amplification, sponsored webinar opportunities, and access to IDSA Speaker's Bureau.
• Vendor Membership Annual membership priced at $10,000 (first year prorated quarterly) for organizations whose primary business is selling security products and services. Includes working group participation, social media amplification, and webinar hosting opportunities on the IDSA BrightTALK channel.
• Identity Management Day Annual awareness day and virtual conference held on the second Tuesday of April featuring educational sessions, identity management awards, and a champion program. The 2026 edition is the sixth annual event, with themes expanding to cover human, machine, and agentic identities.
• NHIcon Annual conference focused on non-human identity and agentic AI security. The 2026 event is titled 'The Rise of Agentic AI Security' and is scheduled for January 27, 2026. Brings together technical practitioners and C-level leaders for actionable strategies on machine and AI agent identity security.
• Technical Working Groups Member-only collaborative working groups covering AI and Identity, Beyond Best Practices, Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM), Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM), and Zero Trust. Membership provides access to the AI and Identity, Machine and Agent Identity, and other subcommittees.
• Annual Trends in Securing Digital Identities Report Annual research publication examining identity sprawl, breach statistics, and recommended security outcomes for organizations. The 2025 edition covers rising incidents, identity sprawl, and system challenges across the identity security landscape.

Quantifiable outcome

• 79% of organizations reported suffering an identity-related breach in the past two years; 99% of those breaches being preventable with proper identity security measures
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

28 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AembitcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 January 2025Aembit co-organized the inaugural NHIcon conference focused on non-human identity security. David Goldschlag, Aembit CEO, co-leads the IDSA Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Aembit sponsors IDSA broadcasts and contributes content on workload identity and AI agent security.
• National Cybersecurity AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 April 2021IDSA established Identity Management Day in partnership with the National Cybersecurity Alliance in 2021. This annual awareness day (held on second Tuesday of April) educates business leaders, IT decision makers, and the public about identity management importance. The partnership combines IDSA's identity security expertise with NCSA's cybersecurity awareness mission.
• SailPointcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSailPoint participates in AI and Identity Working Group and Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Adam Creaney leads the AI and Identity Working Group. SailPoint contributes white papers, case studies, and webinar content on identity governance and AI.
• CyberArkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCyberArk participates in AI and Identity Working Group and Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Kevin Bocek serves as co-leader of the Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Contributes content on privileged access management and AI agent security.
• OktacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOkta participates in Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Stephen Lee, VP Technical Strategy & Partnerships, quoted supporting IDSA's vendor-agnostic approach. Okta contributes to working groups and thought leadership content.
• SaviyntcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSaviynt co-chairs Identity Management Day (Americas) and participates in Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Ravi Erukulla represents Saviynt as broadcast panelist and contributor. Saviynt sponsors events and contributes content on identity governance.
• BeyondTrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBeyondTrust participates in Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Felix Gaehtgens contributes content on AI agent taxonomy and NHI maturity models.
• SeguracoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSegura participates in AI and Identity Working Group and Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. David Muniz contributes content on NHI maturity models and real-world agent identity applications.
• OmadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOmada co-chairs Identity Management Day (EMEA) and contributes broadcast content. Paul Walker serves as Field Strategist representing Omada in IDSA activities.
• AdobecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdobe is featured in IDSA case studies demonstrating successful identity-centric Zero Trust implementation. Contributed the 'Adobe Finds ZEN Using Identity-Centric Security' case study.
• LogRhythmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLogRhythm featured in IDSA case studies showcasing identity-centric Zero Trust journey. Contributed 'LogRhythm's Journey to Identity-Centric Zero Trust' case study.
• ArconminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArcon participates in Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Eleanor Meritt contributes to AI agent taxonomy work.
• CorshaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorsha participates in Machine and Agent Identity Working Group focusing on machine identity security.
• TokencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerToken sponsors IDSA broadcasts on MFA and authentication security. Kevin Surace contributes expert content on assured identity and biometric FIDO2 authentication.
• Bravura SecuritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBravura Security sponsors IDSA broadcasts on enterprise password management. Contributes content on password security and enterprise password management best practices.
• KroncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKron sponsors IDSA broadcast on Privileged Access Management for Non-Human Identities. Jeff Hughes represents Kron as speaker on next-generation PAM.
• AxoniuscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAxonius participates as member company contributing to identity security resources and thought leadership.
• Palo Alto NetworkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPalo Alto Networks participates through the Machine and Agent Identity Working Group. Sitaram Iyer leads Machine & Agent Identity Technical Product Engineering and contributes to NHI discussions.
• PermisocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPermiso participates as member company. Sponsored broadcast on AI users, builders, and agents security. Ian Ahl represents Permiso in identity security discussions.
• CerbycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCerby participates as member company contributing content on disconnected applications and nonfederated application security challenges.
• Nearshore CyberminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNearshore Cyber participates as member company supporting IDSA mission and resources.
• Oasis SecurityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOasis Security participates as member company contributing to identity security resources.
• GallagherminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGallagher participates as member company contributing to IDSA resources and working groups.
• IdentityXPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIdentityXP co-chairs Identity Management Day (Oceania-Asia) and provides regional leadership for identity security awareness.
• SilverJacketcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSilverJacket serves as Communications Partner for Identity Management Day events, providing marketing and communications support.
• MorganFranklin ConsultingminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMorganFranklin (as Optiv/MorganFranklin Cyber) supports IDSA as System Integrator member providing implementation expertise.
• OptivminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOptiv supports IDSA as System Integrator member providing cybersecurity consulting and implementation services.
• Atos/EvidenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAtos/Eviden supports IDSA as System Integrator member providing global technology and consulting services.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cloud Security Alliance: Nonprofit industry alliance that provides vendor-neutral education, research, certifications, and working groups around cloud security. The most direct peer to IDSA by structure, membership model, and mission; notably, IDSA's Executive Director Jeff Reich and Operations Director previously led CSA, indicating a directly transferable organizational playbook.
• Open Identity Exchange (OIX): Nonprofit focused on identity interoperability and trust frameworks; closely comparable in being a vendor-neutral identity industry alliance with membership-based governance and working groups that produce guidance for enterprises.
• FIDO Alliance: Nonprofit industry consortium developing open authentication standards (FIDO2, passkeys, WebAuthn) and working groups for identity, biometrics, and authentication. Comparable in structure (membership-funded, vendor-neutral, working-group driven) and directly overlapping on identity and authentication standards that IDSA references in its framework.
• National Cybersecurity Alliance: Nonprofit public-private partnership focused on cybersecurity awareness and education, co-founder of Identity Management Day with IDSA since 2021. Directly comparable mission of convening industry around a security sub-topic; comparable operating model (memberships, events, awareness campaigns) and partner-set.
• Kantara Initiative: Nonprofit industry alliance developing identity assurance, identity governance, and federated identity frameworks. Comparable by mission (identity-focused, standards-oriented, vendor-neutral) and by organizational structure (working groups, member-funded, technical recommendations).

Others

• IAPP (International Association of Privacy Professionals): Nonprofit professional association for privacy practitioners with certifications and conferences. Connected to identity security through identity and data governance overlap, but focuses on privacy rather than identity-centric security; comparable membership/operating model and audience.
• OASIS Open: Nonprofit standards organization that produced SAML, OIDC, and other identity-related standards. Comparable as a vendor-neutral consortium driving identity and security ecosystem standards, with overlap through member companies and working groups that intersect with IDSA's Zero Trust and IGA content.

Broad incumbents

• SANS Institute: Nonprofit cybersecurity training and research organization producing frameworks, certifications, and research widely consumed by the same practitioner audience as IDSA. Comparable in producing identity- and security-related research and educational content at industry scale, though training- and certification-led rather than alliance-led.
• ISACA: Global nonprofit association for IT governance, risk, cybersecurity, and audit professionals (CISA, CISM, CRISC). Comparable membership/education model addressing overlapping practitioner segments (especially identity governance, audit, and assurance work that IDSA's framework also covers).
• (ISC)²: Global nonprofit association for cybersecurity professionals (CISSP, CCSP) with membership, training, and certifications. Operates in the broader cybersecurity education space rather than identity-specific, but is a comparable large-scale membership association serving security practitioners — the same audience IDSA targets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/idsalliance
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC8yfa2vRYDjS7TUWKAHIrwg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/identity-defined-security-alliance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Identity Defined Security Alliance