Non-human identity
Also called NHI, machine identity, workload identity
Any account or credential that software uses in place of a person, such as a service account, an access key or an AI agent's identity.
Identity systems were built around people: someone joins, gets an account, changes role, leaves. A non-human identity is everything else that signs in. Service accounts, access keys, tokens and certificates all count, and so does the identity an AI agent works under.
They are easy to create and easy to forget. A person who leaves is removed by HR's process. A key made for a 3-month pilot has no such process, and it goes on working until someone finds it.
AI agents make the problem bigger, because each one needs an identity of some kind and some exist only for minutes. The care is the same for all of them: know who owns it, give it only what the job needs, and make sure it ends.
For example
A company with 300 staff counts its sign-ins and finds thousands of keys, tokens and service accounts that belong to no employee. Those are its non-human identities.
Put it to use
Where you'll meet non-human identity in ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude, how to use it there, and the mix-up most people make.
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