Workload Identity

What is workload identity?

Workload identity is an approach in which an application, container, or function authenticates by proving what it is to the platform running it, and receives a short-lived credential in return, instead of holding a stored secret. The identity attaches to the workload itself rather than to an account somebody created and a key somebody copied.

How workload identity works

• The platform attests the workload: which cluster, which namespace, which service, which repository.
• That attestation is exchanged for a short-lived token, typically valid for minutes.
• The token is scoped to specific permissions and expires with no revocation step required.
• Federation lets a workload in one platform obtain credentials in another without a shared key.
• Nothing durable is stored, so there is no secret to leak, rotate, or forget about.

Why workload identity is replacing service account keys

A static service account key is a credential with no expiry, frequently no owner, and a copy in at least one place nobody remembers. Workload identity removes the object rather than protecting it better. The trade-off is that it only works where the platform supports attestation, so most companies run both models for years and need to know which workloads still depend on a stored key.

Examples and use cases

A team migrates its deployment pipeline from a stored cloud key to federated workload identity, so the pipeline proves which repository and branch it runs from and receives a ten-minute credential. The stored key can be deleted. The remaining question is the one every estate faces: which other integrations still hold long-lived keys, who owns them, and what breaks when they are revoked. Corma tracks those non-human identities alongside the human ones, so one inventory covers both.

Related concepts

• AI agent automation
• Identity and access management platform
• Automated identity governance and administration

FAQ

What is the difference between workload identity and a service account?

A service account is an account with a stored credential. Workload identity issues a short-lived credential based on proven runtime characteristics, so nothing is stored anywhere.

Is workload identity the same as machine identity?

They overlap. Machine identity usually refers to devices and certificates, while workload identity refers to running software such as containers, functions, and deployment pipelines.

Does workload identity work across clouds?

Yes, through federation. A workload in one platform can present its attested token to another and receive scoped credentials without any shared static key.

Does workload identity still need governance?

Yes. The credential is short-lived, but the permissions it grants are not. Those permissions still need an owner, a defined scope, and a place in the access review.

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