SPIFFE focuses on who a workload is. It issues cryptographic identities to services and workloads so they can prove their authenticity to each other without relying on stored secrets. OAuth focuses on what a workload is allowed to do. It defines how access is delegated and controlled when one service needs to interact with another or call an external API.
In MCP, every request comes from a nonhuman identity: an agent, server or tool. These identities don’t act under direct human oversight. They generate requests dynamically, chain operations and carry data across trust boundaries.
Choosing the right flow is only the beginning. The real challenge is implementing either flow without creating persistent credential vulnerabilities that undermine your security.
IAM migrations stall in hybrid enterprises due to massive on-prem Active Directory (AD) deployments, budget and regional constraints, and a lack of alignment among development, DevOps, and security teams.
After locking down workforce identity, Snowflake’s security team took on the harder problem – controlling non-human access at scale without slowing teams down.
