Unveiling the Essence of the Security Customer Trust Function

After nearly a decade of security experience, I’ve seen firsthand how crucial focusing on customer trust is to organizational success. Over the last four years at Okta, I’ve gained insights into the dynamic between trust, security and customer satisfaction. In this blog, I’ll share my reflections on the vital role of Okta’s Security Customer Trust team, highlighting the key principles and practices imperative to building trust.

Introducing Okta’s Trust Center

There was a time when only a handful of enterprise SaaS vendors possessed SOC 2 or ISO 27001 certifications. However, in today’s market, vendors are scrutinized based on the data they handle, regardless of their size. Small B2B SaaS companies must now provide compliance certifications, penetration testing results, and answers to extensive security questionnaires to finalize deals, and larger SaaS vendors can find themselves responding to dozens (or even hundreds) of security questionnaires.

Trust plays a pivotal role in getting new prospects interested and retaining current customers. Earning and maintaining customer trust isn't just a goal; it's a commitment guiding every decision. 

As part of Okta’s Secure Identity Commitment, we've taken a proactive approach to this challenge by launching a new consolidated Trust Center. This centralized, seamless, and secure repository allows customers and partners to self-service access key compliance documents to validate our security posture and stay informed on our latest updates. Explore our new Trust Center and learn more about our transparency and security practices at security.okta.com.

Security Customer Trust Team at Okta

In Okta's ecosystem, the Security Customer Trust team is essential for maintaining platform security and continued integrity. This team proactively communicates Okta's security strategy, responds to customer inquiries, and builds trust through consistent outreach. By working closely with internal security teams, product, sales, privacy, and customer support, we ensure security is integrated across all aspects of Okta’s operations. This dedication to transparency, accountability, and customer-centricity helps Okta earn and maintain the trust of its global customer base.

Trust is more than just a buzzword; it’s a core principle woven into every facet of our organization. As a provider of identity management solutions, Okta understands that trust and identity are foundational to customer relationships. With the ever-growing complexity of identity attacks, protecting against these threats is critical. Okta remains committed to prioritizing features that safeguard users under the Okta Secure Identity Commitment, ensuring ongoing protection as technology evolves.

The Security Customer Trust team operates with a clear mission: to bolster security outcomes for Okta customers and the communities we serve. The team is dedicated to advocating best practices and championing zero trust principles when leveraging Okta. Actively seeking feedback from customers and prospects, the team continually helps to enhance Okta's products and services, ensuring they remain at the forefront of security innovation.

Trust is the glue that binds Okta’s external relationships with customers, partners, vendors, and communities. Okta's vision, “to free everyone to safely use any technology”, underscores its commitment to providing a secure and reliable digital identity service. Rooted in the principle of "love our customers," the team is dedicated to ensuring Okta’s services remain both available and secure.

The evolution of the CISO role highlights the growing importance of security in business strategy. Modern CISO’s are not only security practitioners, but also the strategic leaders responsible for integrating security across business operations, managing risks, and fostering a collective cybersecurity culture.

Implementing and Maintaining Trust

Building customer trust is integral, especially given Identity Providers (IdP) like Okta face constant threats from well-funded adversaries. Cyber threats are persistent, highlighting the need for strong security measures. As Johan Thorbecke said, "Trust arrives on foot and leaves on horseback." Trust can be fragile, so it's imperative to maintain through continuous and comprehensive security efforts to maintain confidence in cloud services.

Security-First Approach

Okta places security at the heart of everything, from product development to customer support. By sticking to strict security standards, Okta customers are reassured that their identities and data are safe. Okta Security articles help build trust and transparency with regular updates on security measures, product features, and potential vulnerabilities in alignment with our vision to free everyone to safely use any technology. 

Communication and Transparency

Clear communication is pivotal to building trust. Okta has simplified accessing security information by uploading third-party attestations, industry-standard questionnaires, and current policies to our Trust Center, reducing the need for formal security reviews and lengthy questionnaires.

The effectiveness of any Trust Center hinges on the quality of its content. In Okta’s, you’ll find: 

• Policies covering all aspects of security

• Information addressing common questions and standard questionnaires

• Roadmaps outlining upcoming security improvements

• Certifications, privacy policies, and whitepapers

Centralizing these documents creates a secure hub for security information, ensuring only authorized individuals have access. 

Customer-Centricity and Continuous Improvement

At Okta, customer-centricity and continuous improvement are priorities. Okta’s solutions are tailored to meet the evolving needs and preferences of our customers. We demonstrate our commitment to both trust and customer satisfaction by listening to customer feedback and addressing concerns. 

We also understand that trust is earned through consistent performance and continuous enhancement, Okta invests in research and innovation to stay ahead of emerging threats. Continuous improvement is key, and every employee plays a part in maintaining customer trust by fostering a culture of security awareness.

The Future of Customer Trust

Advances in technology and cyber threats will continue to grow in sophistication, and as such organizations must remain dedicated to building trust, viewing new challenges as opportunities for growth and innovation. I’m confident that Okta will continue to set high standards in both trust-building and identity management, while staying committed to strong core values including integrity, security, and customer-centricity.