Okta Platform

Based on customer requirements for Okta Platform, I have worked on multiple engagements. Passkeys are related to inline hooks. Currently, whatever the client requires, we ensure that Okta can fit into the environment where the client is looking to implement it. The client environment and Okta should come together and complete the client's requirement. This includes MFA-related configurations, SMS-related features, third-party SMS providers, MFAs for only particular users, or network zones restrictions.

Okta Platform has peculiarities that can adopt a client environment easily compared to other single sign-on tools. It is very user-friendly and admin-friendly with everything available through a plug-and-play approach. Most other products, such as OneLogin , are tricky to understand and require more implementation work. With Okta Platform, you just need to take the plugin and use it with your current environment. Okta Platform also has more workflows automations available, which are unique features. Okta Platform is always coming up with new features such as OPAM and governance.

Okta Platform has the capability to protect non-human identities. Okta Platform has a Universal Directory that can pull accounts from different sources and store them securely. With different connectors and service accounts, you can connect to a PAM tool and ensure that passwords are rotated frequently, such as every hour or every 24 hours.

Okta Platform's reliability and availability are top-notch. Okta Platform is a SaaS-based tool with in-house disaster recovery. It does not have any downtime. If you see frequent downtimes or inaccessible tools with other products, you cannot go with those products. With Okta Platform, you have zero downtime and a proper environment to handle everything, which is why every customer is moving to it for reliability.

Okta Platform is already improving in many ways because whatever the current hot topic is, such as AI, Okta Platform is also bringing it up. I believe they are already one step ahead for every industry standard, so I do not think improvable things will do because they are already in the pipeline.

One feature I can mention is that there should be an optional registration option for multiple MFA factors. If a user has already migrated to one type of multifactor authentication and wants to register for another multifactor option, there is currently no option unless it is required. If an industry standard requires a new MFA, we want to give users the option for other multifactor authentication, but currently, this is a mandatory feature only. Some cases mean users do not want to register for new things, so whenever they want to feel comfortable, they should be able to do it. This feature is really restricting because it is mandatory. I want to have it as optional and more flexible for registering multiple MFA options.

I have used Okta Platform for about 7.5 years.

We do communicate with the technical support of Okta Platform, and they have exceptional knowledge of what they are doing. They have three types of supporting models such as gold, diamond, and premium plus. They are reachable and have a toll-free number that you can call anytime for assistance. They also have a networking team with very good support. Every type of issue has a proper team to support it, so you do not need to go to multiple teams. When you write the description, it will specify whether the issue is related to MFA and which MFA support to reach out to, or if it is related to developers and which developer support to contact. Earlier, you would go to the support team and they would segregate it and raise the case in the backend with the developers.

I rate the technical support of Okta Platform as nine out of ten. The one percent adjustment is due to time zone differences. Although you have 24/7 support for all time zones, there will be some gap from one time zone to another time zone.

The usual setup process for Okta Platform starts with onboarding applications if a company has a number of applications to enable single sign-on. Second, if a company wants a new set of policies and automations, such as revoking access within a specific timeframe, you can use connectors in workflows to create this functionality. You can create connectors that disable an account when a user is no longer accessing an application, serving as governance or a license saver.

Installation for Okta Platform is very easy and uses a plug-and-play approach that will take hardly three to four hours. However, the pre-installation steps require testing based on those requirements. If you have a large number of applications to use, you need to take more extra precautions. Installation-wise, it is simple with just a download and install of agents or configuration of workflows, which is a matter of time that could be one day or something. However, it is based on the situation at the client's side. You need to understand the client's requirements and properly relate them to Okta Platform, which will differ from client to client. I cannot tell that this is very much easy to implement because some clients have environments with dependencies.

Initial challenges for Okta Platform are based on the client environment. Customers will expect more customizations for CIAM-related things. Okta Platform has two things in CIAM : Workforce and CIAM . In Customer Identity Access Management , there are some gaps because applications may be capable but it is hard to move the piece of Okta Platform due to applications. For example, an application may need Passkeys because customers now want Passkeys as an advanced feature. If the application is using some older versions of custom widgets or sign-in widgets and you want to implement this new feature, that will take some tricky and hard challenges.

Okta Platform uses advanced AES cryptography to transfer access in depth. For APIs, it is also now using access tokens instead of regular APIs that you can just create and use. The texture in Okta Platform is completely different, and you can use a bearer token instead of an API token, which will control the permissions and attributes to use those APIs. Whenever a user wants to access some API, they first need to call and do machine-to-machine communication before proceeding with changes. Within the time the token session ends, you cannot access it next time, making it more secure than the earlier API approach. In the past, you could create an API token and copy and paste it somewhere to use, but now it is more advanced.

Okta Platform is on the cloud and not on-premises. Okta Platform has the capability to handle both internally facing and customer-facing solutions. Okta Platform now also has the OAuth feature, which is an advanced technology for handling customers. Whatever industries you look at, such as hospitalities, insurance, or marketing, many industries are using Okta Platform because it has the capability to adopt and give the solution that the client exactly needed.

Okta Platform has more adaptability. If you have any number of problems, it has the adaptability to solve them. Okta Platform has that capacity. Now with new features, you have governance, Universal Directory, PAM, MFA, and automations all in one place. If you are having older applications that do not support SAML, you have an access gateway connector. Whatever problem you have, there is a solution with Okta Platform, and it has that capability to resolve those issues. Okta Platform can fit in approximately 99% of any environment. I would rate this review an overall 9.5 out of 10.

I usually used Okta Platform  for managing user identities and ensuring secure access to our applications.

Okta Platform  helped me secure access to cloud infrastructure, APIs, containerized workloads, and AI/GenAI services in my architecture, enhancing our security posture significantly.

Okta Platform protected non-human identities in my environment, such as service accounts and machine-to-machine access.

The features or capabilities of Okta Platform that I have found the most valuable include its single sign-on and multi-factor authentication.

The positive impact and benefits I have seen from using Okta Platform involve enhanced security and streamlined user access.

Specific industry and regulatory requirements that Okta Platform helped me address in my cloud environment were critical for compliance.

Since implementing Okta Platform, I have noticed measurable security and operational improvements in my cloud-based workloads.

Okta Platform could be improved or enhanced by adding more integration options for third-party applications.

I have been working with Okta Platform for a considerable time now, which has provided me with great insights into its functionalities.

Okta Platform's stability and reliability are impressive, which is crucial for our operations.

My experience with the technical support of Okta Platform and their customer service was positive, as they were responsive to my inquiries.

I would rate the technical support from one to ten as an eight, appreciating their effectiveness though there is always room for improvement.

I changed the previous solution and decided to switch from Adaxes to something else because we needed more robust features, and with large companies offering solutions such as Okta Platform, it became inevitable.

I participated in the initial setup of Okta Platform, which allowed me to understand its configuration better.

I found everything straightforward during the initial setup; however, I did encounter some challenges with integration.

I have experienced a notable ROI from Okta Platform, which has justified our investment in it.

I last engaged with Okta Platform around this time of the year.

I was a customer of Okta Platform and found the solution to meet our requirements effectively.

The last time I used Okta Platform was relatively recently, and it still remains quite effective for our needs.

I did not participate in the decision-making process for Okta Platform purchasing, as that was handled by our procurement team.

I would rate this review an eight out of ten.

Most of what I appreciate about Okta Platform are the no-code features that I have found excellent, as you have a very low requirement to code. Even if a new teammate comes in and tries to get familiar with it, after some basic training, they will be able to perform some minimal tasks that are repeated processes for us. It is quite easy to learn from my perspective if you have basic IAM  knowledge. If you understand the concept, a new person can come in and get up to speed very quickly. You don't have to do very extensive training as you might have to do for some other tools to handle advanced tasks. With five to six months of experience, we can put a person on policy creations.

For me, learning to use Okta Platform was quite easy because I have been in this space for around seven-plus years. I had previous knowledge of ForgeRock  and SailPoint, so it was easy for me to transition to Okta Platform because I had knowledge of the concepts.

The major problem we face with Okta Platform is pricing because most of our clientele move away from Okta Platform because of the pricing. If someone is looking for on-premises solutions, they usually don't choose Okta Platform.

They predominantly try to go for Ping rather than Okta Platform because Ping provides a very wide variety of concepts and tools and details their tool on a very specific level, particularly their on-premises tools. Anyone who invests has to pay a higher price, and if with the same kind of structure they can get some other enterprise-grade tool that caters to all those things, they will definitely choose Ping rather than Okta Platform.

I have approximately three to four years of experience working with Okta Platform , from the time I started working and even before that.

The only issue I faced was once at the start. I have worked with around 50,000 users. Right now, the recent client has more than that, but on average, around 50,000 in a typical scenario. I have never seen drops in Okta Platform systems.

I have contacted technical support or customer support multiple times, but not through standard channels. We are a technical partner with Okta Platform, so we have a channel open all the time. I have been in contact with them for different types of RFPs, and even right now, I am still in communication with Okta Platform support.

I think the quality and speed of support for Okta Platform are among the best. The way they respond and the quickness in terms of when you raise an issue through technical channels such as creating a support ticket, they respond back within the SLA they have provided, which might depend on the kind of service the client has signed an MOU for. It can either be 24 hours or 48 hours based on severity. They do respond within that time, whichever they have agreed on.

I give them a score of eight because I have seen them respond in detail, and you usually don't have to follow up on that. Sometimes, with those kinds of detailed scenarios, there might be misinterpretation at the level where you misunderstand something in the question, and that follow-up can be tricky.

For me, the initial deployment of Okta Platform was already completed for most of the clients because you get built-in support from Okta Platform, so that is majorly the case. For the current client, the tool itself is not decided, so I have not worked on an Okta Platform deployment.

I am majorly on the development and implementation side. For Okta Platform, I have not seen much maintenance happening. There was only once I faced an issue, and that was at the start of my career, but I have never faced that kind of issue in Okta Platform since.

Pricing-wise, Okta Platform is higher compared to the other tools, and my current client actually moved away from Okta Platform because of that reason alone.

Right now, we don't have a tool selected on our client's side, and we are mostly targeting Ping because that caters to all their requirements, and the costing is lower than Okta Platform.

I think the score I give to Okta Platform overall will completely depend on the use cases each client has because it might vary. From my personal opinion, I would rate it around eight because I think there are many things Okta Platform has that are best in terms of IAM  solutions. However, there are still many things that other platforms are doing that are missing in Okta Platform. From my perspective, Okta Platform is currently trying to move towards IGA  as well, but there are still some areas for improvement.