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A cybersecurity expert explains the growing significance of cybersecurity and the trends all companies will need to account for in the future.
In December 2024, the Indian finance ministry announced a new cybersecurity initiative. Its goal was to strengthen cybersecurity across the financial industry and motivate businesses to implement new cybersecurity solutions. Within the initiative, public sector banks will be required to conduct annual hackathons in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Technology and other academic institutions. The hackathons will be dedicated to the development of new tools for fraud detection, security monitoring and user authentication. There are many other examples illustrating the growing importance of cybersecurity.
Sandeep Singh, a cybersecurity expert specializing in Identity and Access Management (IAM), an IEEE senior member, and a certified IDM engineer, has accumulated over 20 years of experience across multiple industries, from finance to healthcare. He has worked with Identity Security and various IAM products, such as Sun IDM, Oracle IDAM, IdentityIQ and Okta in the positions of a senior engineer, a team leader, and a subject matter expert at several companies, including Walmart, TechDemoCracy, HCL and Accenture. He explains that, with the rapid development of technologies, cybersecurity threats also grow, demanding both commercial companies and the government act accordingly to ensure the data of the users is protected.
“I have witnessed how the cybersecurity industry changes with time,” he comments. “New tools and software applications emerge, but the core principle of cybersecurity remains the same. We need to develop robust and flexible solutions, tailored to the needs of the particular organization.”
He adds that, when cybersecurity systems, such as identity and access management, operate correctly, they remain invisible to the general user. But their actual role is hard to overestimate.
The Areas of Special Attention
There are certain industries where cybersecurity and IAM in particular is especially important. One example is the system of access management used by official entities. The significance of cybersecurity in public sector is currently recognized in multiple countries. For instance, during his tenure at HCL Technologies, for two years Sandeep Singh had worked on developing an implementation of the Oracle IDAM system for a city council in Australia.
The project involved migrating their identity management system from Novell Identity Manager to Oracle IDAM. The migration required collaboration with multiple contractors to troubleshoot and resolve critical issues caused by system conflicts. Ensuring a seamless transition was crucial for this project, as proper identity and account management are essential components of secure and convenient operation. In addition to following existing cybersecurity guidelines, such as the Cyber Resilience Act in Europe or the Cyber Security Act 2024 in Australia, an identity management system must comply with existing regulations, such as the Better Practice Guide for Digital Identity and Access Management. At the end of the day, the implementation conducted by Sandeep Singh helped the organization improve user experience and security, ensuring the smooth integration of all system components.
Following the guidelines and regulations that ensure the user data is processed securely is also essential in other industries, and healthcare is one of them. Due to the industry’s specifics, such as the need to process sensitive data regarding health and medical conditions, standard out-of-the-box solutions often are insufficient to meet the client’s specific needs. For example, while working on a healthcare IAM project, Sandeep Singh had to rework existing solutions, adapting them to the client’s needs. The development involved designing and implementing custom workflows for data processing that would cover all the possible scenarios and allow for more granular control of the user’s role and access level. Implementing such a system minimizes data risks or violates users’ privacy.
The Challenges of the Growing Market
The market of IAM solutions is rapidly growing, reaching USD 22.9 billion in 2024. There are several factors that stimulate growth. Among them increasing risks of security breaches and fraud involving AI technology, as well as the growing adoption of IoT. At the same time, organizations, their clients, and customers become more aware of data protection. However, rapid growth brings challenges with it. The landscape of cybersecurity solutions is constantly changing. Some service providers close or fail to deliver an adequate level of security, while new IAM products emerge in their place. As a result, many organizations want to adopt a more flexible and scalable approach to IAM, which often demands reworking and improving their existing systems.
“The number of IAM products on the market is rapidly growing, requiring professionals to expand their knowledge constantly,” explains Sandeep Singh. “To work in the security and IAM industry, professionals need to keep themself updated on new methodologies and solutions.”
Consequently, transferring to another system can present a challenge in itself. For instance, while working for a telecommunication client in the US, Sandeep had to organize the migration of the identity management system from Oracle IAM Software to IdentityIQ. The project was intended to improve the processes of assigning and controlling access rights within the system, which is essential for secure information processing. Transition to the new system ensured that employees had access only to the information necessary for their roles, thus reducing the risk of data breaches and unauthorized access. In addition, the role management automation helped streamline the processes and reduce the administrative workload. The process required understanding and redesigning the IDM architecture to align it with the new software solution. In the process, custom workflows allowed users to manage access permissions in different scenarios, which improved cybersecurity in the organization in general, preventing the risks of data breaches and related losses.
However, the challenges related to implementing modern Identity Security solutions should not prevent companies from investing into them, as they provide tangible benefits both for the company and customers. For example, one of the projects led by Sandeep Singh, implementing IdentityIQ, allowed for 80% improvement in system uptime and 70% increase in performance. In addition, automated identity management processes significantly reduced the amount of manual labor, thus reducing operational cost. As a result, operational efficiency grew 40%. This is just one example of the benefits that a thoroughly developed identity management solution can yield. Similar results can be achieved in other domains, from telecommunication companies to financial institutions, such as Bank of Montreal and Singapore Exchange Sandeep has worked with. In both projects, implementing identity management solutions played a crucial role in ensuring secure operation.
Educating the Next Generation of Professionals
“Throughout my career, I have always found it necessary not only to keep my work up to the highest quality standards but also to support an environment that will motivate other people to do so,” emphasizes Sandeep Singth. “To become a successful IAM professional, one needs to constantly improve and develop one’s technical skills to acquire a strong foundation that will serve as a base for developing custom solutions and integrations.” In addition to technical skills and problem-solving abilities, collaborating effectively is also required, as creating robust IAM systems involves teamwork and collaboration.
When working both in public and private companies, Sandeep aims to create such an environment, as it is a necessary component for working productively and developing efficient solutions. He follows this approach at other projects as well, for instance, while working at the Center of Excellence cybersecurity team, he conducted training sessions to help other team members develop skills and expertise in IAM solutions, as well as provided technical guidance and mentorship to project teams, to ensure productive collaboration. He designed training modules that help employees to enhance their skills in Oracle and IdentityIQ, equipping them to contribute effectively to IAM projects. In addition, he performed code reviews and analyzed existing designs and solutions to ensure they met best practices and aligned with business goals.
Finding information exchange an important factor in developing professional skills, Sandeep Singh also aims to participate actively in the IAM communities and share his research through scientific publications. To date, his works have been presented in the American Research Journal of Computer Science and Information Technology. In the article the reader will find the outline of the modern approach to building resilient security systems, as well as the discussion of more particular aspects of the IAM. His work, presented in publications in media and IAM communities, provides a vivid illustration of the crucial role of cybersecurity in the modern digital economy.
“Another important way to promote innovative approaches in cybersecurity is participating in professional events and awards that aim to highlight the most successful individuals and organizations,” adds Sandeep Singh. “And I’m glad to be a part of a thriving community, participating in judging and reviewing at several events.” He concludes that regular professional interactions, such as hackathons or conferences, will help to grow and develop professional communities, ensuring the oncoming cybersecurity challenges will be tackled successfully, as cybersecurity will play a crucial role in successful digitalization and economic growth.
First Published On: 12th February 2025
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