Non-Human Identity Definition

Non-human identity is any digital identity (such as an account, credential, or token) that does not belong to a human user but is used by applications, services, scripts, or automated processes to access resources within a SaaS environment.

Non-Human Identity FAQs

What is Non-Human Identity?

In SaaS security, a non-human identity refers to digital accounts or credentials used by applications, services, or automated processes rather than people. These identities, such as API keys, service accounts, and machine credentials, are critical for enabling integrations and automations but often have broad or persistent access that can be difficult to track. Because they don’t follow the same lifecycle as human users, unmanaged non-human identities can create significant security risks if not governed with proper controls.

Why is Non-Human Identity Important?

Non-human identities play a critical role in SaaS environments because they enable the integrations, automations, and background processes that keep modern businesses running. From API connections that sync customer data to service accounts powering CI/CD pipelines, these identities often hold the keys to core business functions.

Unlike human users, however, non-human identities are not naturally tied to an employee lifecycle. They don’t get offboarded when someone leaves, and they can proliferate rapidly as new tools and automations are adopted. This makes them a major security gaps: they may have broad or outdated permissions, weakly protected credentials, or no clear ownership.
If left unmanaged, non-human identities can become easy targets for attackers, providing a stealthy path to sensitive data and critical systems. Proper governance, monitoring, and least-privilege access policies help ensure that these powerful identities remain an enabler of productivity rather than a source of hidden risk.

What are the Benefits of Non-Human Identities?

Non-human identities are essential to modern SaaS operations because they make automation, scalability, and integration possible. By allowing applications, services, and scripts to authenticate and interact securely without human intervention, they reduce manual workload and enable systems to work together seamlessly.

Some of the key benefits include:

• Automation and Efficiency. Non-human identities let processes run continuously and reliably, from syncing data between platforms to deploying updates through CI/CD pipelines.
• Scalability. As businesses grow, machine accounts and service identities make it possible to handle increasing workloads without requiring proportional human oversight.
• Consistency. Automated processes reduce the risk of drift and supports compliance with predictable, auditable behaviors.
• Secure Governed Integrations. APIs, bots, and third-party apps rely on non-human identities to connect securely with SaaS platforms, enabling richer workflows and productivity.
• Business Continuity. Even when employees are offline or teams change, non-human identities keep critical services running without interruption.

When properly managed, non-human identities empower organizations to operate faster, more securely, and with greater resilience.

Non-Human Identities Security Risks

While non-human identities are essential for enabling automation and integration across SaaS environments, they also introduce unique security challenges. Unlike human accounts, they are often created in large numbers, persist indefinitely, and may lack clear ownership, making them difficult to govern. This creates security gaps that attackers can exploit to gain unauthorized access.

Some of the most common risks include:

• Overprivileged Access. Service accounts and API keys are frequently granted broad permissions for convenience, violating the principle of least privilege.
• Credential Sprawl. Secrets such as tokens, certificates, and API keys stored in insecure locations may be shared across teams, hardcoded in scripts, stored in insecure locations, or left unrotated, increasing exposure.
• Orphaned Identities. Non-human identities often remain active long after their original use case has ended and retain access to sensitive systems, providing attackers with unnoticed entry points.
• Weak Monitoring. Many organizations focus on human user activity, leaving non-human identity behavior unmonitored and anomalies undetected.
• Exfiltration Risk. If compromised, non-human  identities can silently extract sensitive data or manipulate systems, triggering traditional alerts, making detection harder due to their automated nature and elevated trust levels.

Because of these risks, unmanaged non-human identities are increasingly viewed as one of the largest attack surfaces in SaaS security. Strong governance, visibility, and automated controls are essential to keep them from becoming hidden vulnerabilities.

Examples of Non-Human Identities

Non-human identities come in many forms, depending on the SaaS environment and the systems in use. They are typically tied to applications, services, or automation tasks rather than individual people, and they serve as the backbone for secure communication and integration across platforms.

Some common examples include:

• API Keys. Authentication tokens that allow applications to authenticate and communicate with SaaS platforms (e.g., a marketing tool connecting to Salesforce).
• Service Accounts. Special-purpose accounts used by applications or integrations to run automated tasks, such as syncing data or sending alerts.
• Bots. Automated agents like Slack bots or Teams bots that interact with users and systems using their own identities.
• Certificates & Secrets. Machine credentials such as TLS certificates, OAuth tokens, and SSH  used to establish secure connections.
• Workload Identities. Credentials assigned to containers, serverless functions, or cloud workloads so they can access SaaS resources.
• RPA Identities. Accounts used by robotic process automation (RPA) tools to simulate human activity across SaaS applications.

These identities may not look like traditional usernames and passwords, but they function as digital actors within SaaS systems. Managing them properly ensures that integrations remain secure, traceable, and resilient.

How Does AppOmni Help Secure Non-Human Identities?

AppOmni is the leading SaaS security platform helping organizations gain visibility and control over both human and non-human identities. Trusted by the world’s largest enterprises, AppOmni delivers identity security, access governance, and continuous monitoring to protect mission-critical SaaS environments.

With its patented technology, AppOmni analyzes SaaS configurations,  APIs, service accounts, integration permissions, and security controls to uncover hidden risks tied to non-human identities. The platform identifies overprivileged, misconfigured, or orphaned accounts, monitors API tokens, and enforces least privilege access. This reduces shadow access, data exposure, and integration risk.

AppOmni empowers security teams to define and enforce automated rules for identity use, credential hygiene, and third-party SaaS integrations, which are continuously and proactively validated against best practices. By extending visibility and control to the non-human layer of SaaS ecosystems, AppOmni closes one of the largest and fastest-growing attack surfaces for enterprises.