Demystifying relationship-based access control (ReBAC): what you need to know
ReBAC can be a nebulous term, leading to confusion and varied interpretations. What is ReBAC? Is it better than attribute-based access control (ABAC)?
As identity and access management (IAM) leaders and architects embark on externalizing authorization, they may consider relationship-based access control (ReBAC), a concept that has gained traction.
However, ReBAC can be a nebulous term, leading to confusion and varied interpretations. What is ReBAC? Is it better than attribute-based access control (ABAC)?
How does Axiomatics approach ReBAC?
So let’s dive into ReBAC, explore its challenges, and discuss how Axiomatics’ policy-driven approach addresses this.
Understanding ReBAC: The fundamentals
At its core, ReBAC revolves around granting access based on the relationships between entities, such as users and resources. These relationships can be direct, like a customer representative accessing a customer’s record, or indirect like a teller accessing a customer’s record only if they belong to the same branch. The key objective is to ensure access is granted based on the contextual relationships between the requesting party and the requested resource.
While the concept may seem straightforward, ReBAC implementations can vary. Some advocate for a graph-based authorization model, which visually represents the interconnected relationships. Others prefer a policy-driven approach, where access control rules are defined through policies. Regardless of the chosen method, the ultimate goal remains the same: delivering context-based access decisions in real-time at runtime, adhering to the principle of least privilege (PoLP).
Focusing on outcomes, not technicalities
No matter whether you align yourself to ABAC, ReBAC, or something else entirely, the focus of your implementation has to be how best to achieve your desired outcomes. Rather than getting bogged down in the minutiae of how authorization is delivered, IAM leaders must prioritize what they aim to achieve through authorization. The ultimate objective is to ensure that the right users have access to the right resources at the right time, based on the appropriate relationships and context. The best starting point? Policy.
The Power of policy-driven authorization
Axiomatics recognizes the value of a policy-driven approach to ReBAC implementation. By creating strong policies written clearly and in plain language, enterprises can define access control rules in a human-readable format, making them easier to understand, manage, and audit. Policies provide a clear and concise representation of access control logic, eliminating the need for complex graphical representations.
Policy-driven authorization enables organizations to express ReBAC rules in a structured and maintainable manner. Policies can encompass both direct and indirect relationships, as well as incorporate additional attributes such as time, location, and context. This holistic approach ensures that access control decisions are based on a comprehensive evaluation of all relevant factors.
Axiomatics: Beyond ReBAC
We believe that a successful approach to authorization goes beyond focusing on relationships; rather, it is about how you can achieve your desired outcome. Axiomatics recognizes that effective access control requires considering several attributes and contextual factors including, but not limited to relationships. In addition, because Axiomatics can help you deploy a hierarchical approach to policy structure, this means you can seamlessly incorporate diverse attributes into access control policies and create a flexible and scalable approach to authorization.
This flexibility allows you to tailor access control mechanisms to your specific security requirements. This is crucial because every organization has different concerns, must adhere to different regulations, and is at a unique point in their overall access control maturity.
What you can do now
Relationship-based access control (ReBAC) offers a powerful paradigm for securing resources based on the relationships between entities. While the concept is popular and there are many conversations about whether it is better than other approaches, focusing on the desired outcomes is key.
For more than 15 years, the world’s most recognized brands trust Axiomatics to deliver policy-driven authorization that enables them to build applications faster, removing speed bumps between developers and requestors; apply a Zero Trust strategy to every access control decision, and improve the experience for their customers and workforce without adding friction.
If you’re curious to understand more about ReBAC and policy-driven authorization, request a demo with our team. In 30 minutes, we can show you:
- The best approach – ReBAC, ABAC, or otherwise – is based on what you want to achieve from your authorization deployment
- How and why a hierarchical policy structure may be key to your success
- How to implement a flexible, scalable approach to authorization…and where to start
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About David Brossard
As Chief Technology Officer, David has experience leading the design and development of Salesforce’s identity offering including customer identity and access management (CIAM). He is a founding member of IDPro, a co-author of the OASIS XACML standard, and an expert on standard-based authorization as part of an overall IAM implementation.
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