# Identity & Access — who (or what) is signing in — and most of what signs in now is not a person

*A TechBag category guide. Last reviewed 2026-10-03.*

- Canonical: https://www.thetechbag.com/browse/identity-access
- Routes: 3

## The routes

### Privileged Access Management

Most PAM projects stall not because the product failed, but because nobody could get the accounts into it.

- 30 products compared
- Guide: https://www.thetechbag.com/browse/identity-access/privileged-access-management
- Boundary terms resolved: PAM — privileged access management · PIM — privileged identity management · PEDM — privilege elevation and delegation management · Secrets management

### IAM, SSO & MFA

You probably already own an identity provider. The question is whether it does what you’re about to buy — and where it stops.

- 30 products compared
- Guide: https://www.thetechbag.com/browse/identity-access/iam-sso-mfa
- Boundary terms resolved: Directory · SSO — single sign-on · MFA — multi-factor authentication · Workforce vs customer identity (CIAM)

### Identity Governance

The access review nobody has time to do is the control every auditor asks for first.

- 22 products compared
- Guide: https://www.thetechbag.com/browse/identity-access/identity-governance
- Boundary terms resolved: IGA vs IAM · Provisioning · Access review · Certification

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*Vendor-neutral. Nothing gated. https://www.thetechbag.com/browse/identity-access*