Okta and the Pursuit to Future-Proof Through Identity

In an era where citizen expectations of digital services are expanding, identity is becoming an enabler to citizen centric services and integral to government departments and agencies security posture.

Leading the charge to handle it is Okta, ‘The World's Identity Company’, which has a vision to "free everyone to safely use any technology on any device or app." 

One of those working with Okta to achieve its aim is James Enoch, Regional VP, Head of Public Sector and Education. 

“We create seamless, secure access for workforces to access the technology they need to do the vital work that they do,” James explains. 

It’s his vast experience at market-leading companies like Slack, Salesforce and SAS, together with his public advisory positions, that gives him the dynamic needed to guide a passionate Public Sector team of over 20 across Australia to help organisations leverage identity as a cornerstone of their cybersecurity strategy.

Okta’s impact with partners

Okta's impact is exemplified through its partnership with the Department of Customer Service (DCS) in New South Wales (NSW). Serving a population of over eight million, Okta's Workforce Identity Cloud enables DCS employees to securely access the tools they need for the critical daily work they provide.  

While the Customer Identity Cloud powers the authentication to digital services via Service NSW within DCS, freeing up time for developers to create wonderful digital experiences. "Okta powers the authentication experience and the governance of user data, securing user data while layering additional security via opt-in multi-factor authentication and seamless access via passwordless experiences with device biometrics” James explains.

This highlights the importance Okta takes on providing multilayered security. Yet, in this pursuit of security, it has not lost the other key feature: accessibility.

Balancing security with accessibility

As James puts it: "A secure platform that's inaccessible adds no value, while a platform that's simple to access yet insecure is not fit for purpose in today's threat landscape. That’s the beauty of Okta, we balance the two, security is paramount, but it’s complemented by exceptional user experience."

Passwordless, via passkeys create this perfect balance. Passkeys make secure sign in and sign up as easy as unlocking a phone.

A key trait of pass keys is that they are phishing resistant. Unlike passwords, no key trait can be exposed or stolen. Beyond the security benefits, studies have shown an increased sign in success rate from anywhere between 25% and 400%, with reduced time to sign between 75% and 83%.

As more and more government services are digitised, Okta works hand in hand with the DCS NSW team to be world-class at everything they do in the identity space. Passwordless drives ease of use, security, while saving resources.

Okta’s future outlook

In that same forward-looking view, Okta is investing heavily in advanced technologies to stay ahead of evolving cyber threats. 

Recent releases like Identity Threat Protection powered by Okta AI are designed to help teams scale their defences against a rapidly expanding threat landscape. When Identity Threat Protection notices a change in users risk, Universal Logout lets admins set rules to terminate users sessions and their tokens. This rapid AI driven detection, as James puts it, “is crucial to minimising the threat and impact of a potential breach”

In the Digital Identity space, Okta is working with all levels of Government to move from Digital ID being seen purely as a security enabler, to a driver of competition and productivity. With Okta’s identity-first approach, it’s easy to see how. 

James shares that “At the macro level we have the opportunity to completely transform a citizen's experiences, security and trust via Digital Identity.” He notes the example “where digiital ID to could protect against deep fakes in election campaigns - by linking communication from an elected official to their digital ID. This could help establish trust that the message a citizen is receiving, is from the actual person, something of immense value.”

By balancing security with user experience and continuously innovating to meet new challenges, Okta is not just securing public sector organisations – it's enabling them to deliver better, more efficient services to citizens.

To read the full Department of Customer Service report, click HERE.

Explore the latest edition of Technology Magazine and be part of the conversation at our global conference series, Tech & AI LIVE.

Discover all our upcoming events and secure your tickets today.

Technology Magazine is a BizClik brand