It's long been an open secret among business software buyers that "enterprise" is synonymous with "expensive." That's why companies with tight budgets tend to steer clear of self-described enterprise software—not to mention that they have no use for a catalog of features designed for massive companies with thousands of employees. But imagine their surprise when they find themselves railroaded into sky-high enterprise pricing because they need just one feature.
That feature is single sign-on (SSO). It's a capability that's typically provided by identity management systems, such as Azure Active Directory, Okta, or OneLogin. Once installed, users log in to the network just once, and the SSO system takes over from there, granting them access to applications using a method based on encrypted tokens. It's far more secure than traditional, password-based logins, making it a must-have security measure for companies of all sizes.
However, while most of today's business apps and services support SSO, there's a catch. Unfortunately, vendors almost always unlock SSO support only at their most costly, enterprise pricing tiers, which inevitably comes as a rude awakening for small to midsize businesses, in particular, once they realize SSO is a feature they can't do without. This predatory sales tactic needs to end.
Why Is SSO So Crucial?
There are several reasons why SSO is considered an IT best practice. First, SSO eases the burden on employees to come up with strong passwords for multiple systems. The more logins an employee has to remember, the more likely they will use weak passwords, re-use passwords for multiple accounts, or store their passwords in an insecure way. (Password managers can also help here, but only if they're used properly. Even then, they're still not as secure as SSO.)
More importantly, SSO helps reduce what's termed the "attack surface" of a network. Each application that requires a unique login is another opportunity for an attacker to gain access to business data. But with SSO, it's as if you've built a wall around your data with only one front gate. No one can access an application without the SSO system's approval. That's a significant security upgrade, especially when combined with multi-factor authentication.
SSO makes IT operations easier, too. If an employee has an SSO account, authorizing access to a new application is as easy as connecting the app to that account. But the most significant benefit comes when the employee leaves the company. Without SSO, IT staff would need to manually shut down each of their accounts, leaving room for error. But with SSO, one press of a button and it's lights-out across the board.
These and other security benefits of SSO are so significant that even small businesses (and their financiers) have begun mandating SSO authentication as a matter of IT policy. Once that policy is in place, however, SSO sticker shock can hit like a sucker punch.
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How Much Will SSO Cost You?
It's not that SSO support isn't worth paying for. Given its value, something like a 10% SSO surcharge might seem reasonable. Unfortunately, that's not the type of price increase we're talking about.
According to The SSO Wall of Shame, a site maintained by security expert Rob Chahin, the difference between a vendor's base pricing and what you'll pay to get SSO support is often double or more. Among 53 vendors Chahin sampled, the median price hike was 108%, but some vendors increased prices by 300%, 500%, or more. In one case, the bump was a whopping 6,300%. Other vendors refuse to list their enterprise pricing at all, instead forcing customers to negotiate their own rates.