Identity · Federation
Federation & External Identity
Trusting another organisation's identity provider so its users can access your resources without local accounts.
IntermediateUpdated 2026-09-01
Overview
Federation establishes a cryptographic trust between identity providers. B2B collaboration invites external users as guests governed by your policy; cross tenant access settings and entitlement management define what they may reach.
Customer facing identity (B2C / External ID) is a distinct discipline: self service registration, social identity providers, branding and consent, with very different scale and privacy requirements.
Security considerations
- Review external guest access regularly and apply expiry to guest entitlements.
- Treat any new federation trust as a Tier 0 change requiring approval and alerting.