Okta introduced no-code extensibility for identity proofing, consent management, customer data platforms, and progressive profiling in a move to improve developer velocity so those teams can prioritize building core products, Okta Chief Product Officer Shiv Ramji told SDxCentral.

As identity landscapes grow more complex, Ramji posits its Actions Integrations as a way for developers to integrate security tooling with a drag-and-drop, no-code interface. The service is available through the Okta Customer Identity Cloud powered by Auth0, which means it can be deployed in private or public cloud environments like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure, "regardless of the service provider or cloud deployment option [customers] choose," he said.

A major capability of the service is identity proofing, which helps developers verify a user's true identity by requiring a physical document or biometric before allowing access. This feature is significant for companies delivering online services within highly regulated industries like health care or mobile banking, Ramji explained.

Consent management allows developers to capture and track user contact and consent preferences. "As privacy laws continue to evolve, all businesses need to inform their users about the types of data they collect and how they plan to use it," Ramji said. Okta's no-code customer data platform integration tool allows developers "and marketers with no technical expertise" to link individual users to a true identity "they can trust," he added.

Okta's progressive profiling lets developer teams build custom login flows to collect user data over subsequent logins. "This means users can sign up quickly and organizations can still capture first-party data without adding friction up front," Ramji said, citing research that shows 44% of users are frustrated with long-winded login processes.

Okta plans to add more no-code integrations built by partners into Action Integrations. "Identity and security are not going away, even as companies look for efficiencies," Ramji noted. "From a partner perspective, we have a partner relationship manager who has a close relationship with the third parties building Actions Integrations. We are continuing to invest in the partner experience to make building and listing integrations as self serve as possible."

Ramji said this year will create more urgency for businesses to adopt technology that lets development teams to write secure, scalable, and performant code quickly. "At a macro level, Okta’s next generation of extensibility – including Actions and Actions Integrations – aims to simplify development with no, low, and pro-code options," he explained.

While it might seem simpler at the beginning for developers to build their own identity tools or use open source options, as more capabilities are thrown on the pile, "developers end up spending valuable time on identity while opening up the business to potential compliance, availability, and security risks," Ramji said. To that point, Okta says its no-code extensibility addresses unique identity needs for developers across industries.

"By opening up Actions Integrations to general availability, we are encouraging new partners to build integrations and keep the flywheel going," he added. "We are also continuing to invest in Actions as a pro-code option if customers cannot find the integration that meets their needs. We are supporting the full spectrum of code as we continue to develop our extensibility tools."