Compare beyond Identity

Beyond Identity  vs traditional SSO

Traditional SSO: Built for convenience, not security

Legacy SSO gives you access, but not assurance. Beyond Identity delivers continuous, phishing-resistant access control that secures both users and devices. No shared secrets means zero account compromise.

Traditional SSO

What is it?

A secure-by-design, easy-to-use SSO that makes identity-based attacks impossible. Delivers continuous authentication for users and devices, fine-grained risk-based policies, seamless integration with your security stack—and is fully passwordless and phishing-resistant.

Legacy IT solutions designed to provide access to data and systems. Often based on single-point-in-time authorization that primarily focuses on users only (not devices), using methods that can be susceptible to phishing, such as passwords and tokens.

User experience

Seamless

Passwordless and single-device — no OTPs, no push, no password prompts.

Frustrating

Requires passwords, MFA prompts, and often a second device.

Security
posture

Secure-by-design

Can operate as a standalone secure access layer or augment SSO/IAM for hardened authentication.

Vulnerable

Weak default security posture; often requires additional protection layers.

Authentication scope

Users and devices

Authenticates both users and devices continuoumsly.

Users only

Validates user identity only. Devices are unverified.

Phishing resistance

100% Phishing-resistant

Only ever uses phishing resistant factors to authenticate, including biometric checks and hardware-protected keys.

Exposed

Commonly relies on phishable factors (SMS, OTP, Push).

Device posture
validation

Continuous

Continuously evaluates device health and configuration in real time.

Sporadic

Performs one-time or no device checks.

Zero standing  
privileges

Just-in-time access

Enforces just-in-time access — permissions are granted only when needed, then revoked.

Persistent privileges

Grants persistent access that increases lateral movement risk.

Real-time revocation

Active

Uses native signals (e.g., OS status, firewall) and third-party risk inputs to revoke access mid-session.

Passive

Revocation is delayed or dependent on periodic polling.

Security stack  
enrichment

Collaborative

Bi-directional data sharing with your EDR, MDM, and ZTNA; blocks risky logins based on real-time integrated risk signals.

Siloed

Poor visualization, shallow integrations, limited signal reuse.

AI deception  
defense

Connections and in-display

Prevents unauthorized devices from joining comms platforms and visually certifies user identity.

Connections only

Cannot verify live participant identity; accepts any authenticated connection.

Lifecycle  
management

Security-first

Secure-by-design and auto-syncs with your directories for seamless JML operations.

Simple

Bolt-on provisioning tools create workflow gaps and security blind spots.

Risk discovery

Dynamic

Continuously scans managed and unmanaged devices for misconfigurations and anomalies.

Immature

Limited detection, especially on unmanaged devices.

World-leading organizations partner with Beyond Identity

See the difference

Talk to an expert and discover why customers of all sizes across industries choose Beyond Identity.

Unrivaled identity security that doesn’t compromise on performance.
Faster threat-blocking at greater scale and with higher accuracy than humanly possible.
More strategic and actionable insights that also help reduce spend thanks to Beyond Identity.