Managing identities across multiple cloud providers is complex due to the need for scalability, interoperability, and consistent access control. Thefederationapproach is commonly used to address this challenge. Identity federation allows organizations to use a single set of credentials across different cloud providers by leveraging standards such as SAML, OAuth, or OpenID Connect. This enables seamless authentication and authorization without requiring separate identity management systems for each provider.
From theCCSK v5.0 Study Guide, Domain 6 (Identity, Entitlement, and Access Management), Section
6.3:
"Identity federation is a critical approach for managing identities in cloud environments, especially when scaling across multiple providers. Federation allows organizations to use a trusted identity provider (IdP) to authenticate users, enabling single sign-on (SSO) and consistent access control across disparate cloud services." Option C (Federation) is the correct answer.
* Option A (Decentralization) is incorrect because decentralizing identity management increases complexity and reduces consistency across providers.
* Option B (Centralization) is incorrect because, while centralized identity management may be used within a single organization, it does not scale effectively across multiple cloud providers without federation.
* Option D (Outsourcing) is incorrect because outsourcing identity management does not inherently address the scalability and interoperability challenges of cloud environments.
References:
CCSK v5.0 Study Guide, Domain 6, Section 6.3: Identity Federation.
CSA Security Guidance for Critical Areas of Focus in Cloud Computing v4.0, Domain 11.