For decades, identity and access management (IAM) has been the cornerstone of governance, risk, and compliance (GRC). Organizations have relied on IAM to ensure that the right people had the right access to the right systems at the right time, with sufficient oversight to satisfy auditors and regulators. This focus on human identity made sense when employees, contractors, and customers were the primary users of digital systems. But the landscape has changed dramatically.
Today, identity extends beyond humans to machines in the cloud and now even further to physical machines in operational and critical infrastructure environments. Robots helping on the production line, programmable logic controllers automating industrial plants, and autonomous drones operating in digital warehouses are all part of the connected modern enterprise in sectors such as manufacturing, logistics and distribution, transportation, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, chemicals, and more. These systems, increasingly powered by AI and blending digital decision-making with physical action, must be governed with the same if not more rigor as people or cloud workloads. In fact, machines outnumber humans more than 80:1 in digital space and that number continues to explode. For GRC leaders in these industries, the imperative is clear: identity must extend to machines, both digital and physical.
The Evolution of Identity
The way organizations use identity has expanded dramatically over time, tracking the broader changes in technology and business operations. What began as a discipline focused solely on managing human access has evolved to encompass digital machines in the cloud and now physical machines and AI systems operating in the real world.
- Human IAM. The traditional foundation was securing access for employees, partners, and customers. This phase focused on authentication, authorization, and auditing of human users in IT systems.
- Cloud and API machines. As organizations moved to the cloud, machine-to-machine connections proliferated. Service accounts, APIs, microservices, and workloads created an explosion of identities that were invisible to traditional IAM. These digital machines needed strong identity management to prevent shadow accounts, key sprawl, and unauthorized access.
- Physical machines and Physical AI. The current frontier is robots on factory floors, industrial control systems, operational technology, and AI-driven machines that directly impact uptime, safety, and business continuity. In industries such as manufacturing, logistics and distribution, transportation, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, and chemicals, the stakes are higher because a failed identity check is not just a compliance issue but can cause operational downtime, financial loss, or even physical harm.
The Uniqueness of Physical Machines
What makes physical machines different from cloud workloads is their direct interaction with the real world and the kinetic effects they can have. If a cloud workload fails an identity check, it can be stopped and restarted. If a robotic arm or power grid controller is compromised, the result may be production downtime, safety risks, physical damage, or infrastructure outages.
Machine identity in operational technology (OT) and industrial control system (ICS) environments is about more than just cyber.. Introducing machine identity improves maximum uptime and operational resilience by preventing unauthorized access that could disrupt production. It creates strong access boundaries so machines only communicate with trusted peers, limiting lateral movement. It reduces the attack surface by eliminating reliance on simplistic IP addresses, default passwords, shared credentials, and unmanaged service accounts. And it builds safety and trust in automation and AI by ensuring only authenticated machines can issue or receive commands.
Beyond the technical necessity, machine identity has become a governance and compliance requirement for industries where downtime and safety incidents carry high costs and regulatory mandates exist.
Machine Identity in Frameworks and Mandates
Identity is embedded in nearly every major cybersecurity and risk management framework, and it is increasingly reflected in compliance mandates for industries that rely on operational technology and industrial control systems.
Several well-established frameworks lay the foundation for extending IAM beyond humans to machines. IEC 62443, written specifically for industrial automation and control systems, sets the clearest expectations by requiring unique identification and authentication of not only users but also system components such as devices, controllers, and applications. For manufacturing, oil and gas, and chemical plants, this framework demonstrates that machine identity is an essential part of protecting uptime and safety.
Other global frameworks, such as NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF 2.0) in the United States and ISO/IEC 27001 and 27002 internationally, have traditionally focused on human users and IT systems but are increasingly interpreted to cover machines as well. Both emphasize identity and access control as foundational to security programs, and regulators now expect organizations to apply these principles to workloads, service accounts, and non-human actors in industrial environments.
NIST SP 800-53 and NIST SP 800-207 extend the guidance further. NIST SP 800-53 explicitly requires unique identities for devices, processes, and services, while NIST SP 800-207, which defines Zero Trust Architecture, treats subjects as either human or non-human and requires continuous verification of every session. Together, they establish the expectation that machine identity applies across both digital cloud workloads and physical industrial systems.
While frameworks provide guidance, mandates make machine identity non-negotiable. The Department of Defense’s ICAM and Zero Trust requirements call for every device and workload to have an enforceable identity across all systems, including OT and ICS, in the near future. For defense contractors, logistics providers, and transportation operators in the defense supply chain, compliance is essential to remain eligible for contracts.
In the energy sector, NERC CIP mandates strong identity and authentication for all bulk electric system cyber assets and field devices. These requirements ensure that utilities can prove accountability for every machine connection that touches the grid, reducing both cyber and operational risk.
In practice, compliance mandates force organizations to implement what frameworks have long recommended. For industries like pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, and oil and gas, this means that machine identity is not just a cybersecurity best practice, but a requirement for operating safely, reliably, and legally. Compliance in these domains is not theoretical. It ensures organizations can prove accountability in the event of a cyberattack or operational disruption, satisfying both regulators and stakeholders.
The Business and GRC Imperative
Extending IAM to machines is more than just checking a compliance box. It is fundamental to governance, risk management, and operational resilience. Without machine identity, organizations face higher risks of downtime, safety incidents, cyberattacks, and regulatory penalties. With machine identity, they gain improved uptime, reduced attack surface, stronger supply chain trust, and audit readiness.
For executives in industries like manufacturing, logistics and distribution, transportation, pharma, oil and gas, and chemicals, the message is simple: identity is the anchor of trust across IT, OT, and AI-driven systems.
Conclusion: Machine Identity is Non-negotiable for OT and Critical Infrastructrue
IAM is no longer just about people logging into systems. It is about every actor, every machine, and every connection. In the modern enterprise, humans, cloud workloads, AI, and physical machines all collaborate and all require strong, verifiable identities.
For GRC leaders, this is both a challenge and an opportunity. By extending IAM to OT and ICS systems, industrial robots, and physical AI, organizations not only strengthen compliance but also ensure operational resilience and digital trust. The future of governance and risk management depends on recognizing one truth: identity must be everywhere.