What is Single Sign-on (“SSO”)?

SSO is a centralized security service where a single “master key” is used to access all systems to which one is authorized. SSO is achieved by users having a single user id and password there by eliminating the need for users to remember multiple passwords.

Single Sign-on (“SSO”) has been the holy grail of trusted access and authentication strategies within the distributed enterprise environment for nearly a decade.

SSO has emerged as a key initiative as CIO's recognize that SSO could reduce their company’s IT budget by reducing their security program’s Total Cost of Ownership (“TCO”). In fact, gartner estimates the price of managing user passwords carries a monthly operational cost of $32 alone. According to the research firm IDC, SSO is fueling the growth of the Access, Authentication & Authorization (“3A’s”) market from the tune of $3.6 billion in 2001 to an estimated $7.6 billion in 2004.

Providing users with a single identity common to every system can yield significant economies of scale and dramatically improve an organization’s security posture.