Cisco Duo IAM Protects Against AI-Driven Identity Threats

Cisco has unveiled its new Identity and Access Management (IAM) solution, Duo IAM, which aims to revolutionize how organizations tackle persistent identity-based attacks in the age of artificial intelligence. With the increasing sophistication of threats, traditional IAM solutions have proven woefully inadequate, leaving attackers with an easy target: identity.

According to Cisco Talos Incident Response cases in 2024, identity is now the prime target for bad actors, accounting for a staggering 60% of incidents. This is due in part to critical weaknesses in current solutions that attackers can easily exploit. Duo IAM offers a groundbreaking security-first approach, built on its globally trusted multifactor authentication (MFA) system, to address this pressing issue.

"The security industry is facing an 'identity crisis' as persistent identity-based attacks are among the most dangerous and costly challenges for security teams," said Jeetu Patel, President and CPO at Cisco. "Attackers don't need to hack in; they can simply log in. While identity is the foundation of strong security, traditional IAM solutions have failed to prioritize security despite increasingly sophisticated threats."

Duo IAM is the latest advancement in Cisco's long-standing commitment to user-friendly Zero Trust security. This innovative solution offers a fundamentally different approach to identity management, one that attackers hate and users love. With Duo IAM, organizations can securely manage their entire identity infrastructure, including storing user identities, managing access to resources, and integrating with existing third-party identity systems.

The new User Directory simplifies storing user information, including usernames, emails, and roles, while the Identity Routing Engine allows Duo to integrate with many identity providers either as an identity broker or secondary identity provider. This flexibility ensures that organizations can adapt their security posture to meet evolving threats and regulations.

A Comprehensive Solution for Modern Identity Threats

Duo IAM is purpose-built to protect against modern identity threats, incorporating cutting-edge features such as AI-driven behavioral analytics and Cisco's unmatched reach into the network. This enables organizations to gain comprehensive visibility, threat detection, and the ability to take graduated responses like quarantining an identity, killing active sessions, or isolating the network.

With its AI Assistant embedded in Duo IAM, organizations can easily deploy and manage this solution out-of-the-box. Globally trusted Duo MFA now delivers the strongest form of authentication without sacrificing convenience or purchasing expensive hardware keys.

A New Standard for Identity Security

Duo's commitment to security is refreshing, particularly its approach to end-to-end phishing resistance. This innovation marks a major leap forward in combatting identity threats and setting a new standard for the industry. According to Todd Thiemann, Principal Analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group, "Duo's approach to maximizing security while minimizing user and admin friction is exactly what the industry needs."

A Growing Need for Identity Security

The 2025 Cybersecurity Readiness Index reveals that nearly a third of companies worldwide rank identity as their top cybersecurity challenge. Traditional IAM solutions often treat security as optional rather than foundational, leaving organizations vulnerable to modern identity threats.

"Identity breaches are no longer the exception; they're the rule," said Todd Perrault, SVP of Client Advisory at Optiv. "Seeing a trusted security brand like Duo broaden from access management to include identity management and provide a security-first approach in the market is both timely and refreshing."

A New Era for Identity Security

Cisco Duo IAM represents a new era for identity security, one that puts trust back into identity security and provides comprehensive protection against AI-driven identity threats. With its groundbreaking solution, organizations can finally rest easy knowing their identity infrastructure is secure and up-to-date.