What are the main Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance vendors?

Representative vendors include Oasis Security, Entro Security, Aembit, Token Security. B4 Pro scores the full set.

Security & Compliance · Engineering, IT & AI

Should you build or buy Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance?

Non-Human Identity (NHI) security and governance software discovers, inventories, and monitors service accounts, API keys, OAuth grants, machine credentials, and workload identities across cloud, SaaS, and on-premises environments. As AI agents and microservices multiply, the category addresses the growing problem of untracked, over-privileged machine credentials that create lateral movement risk and compliance gaps.

The build-vs-buy decision for Non-Human Identity Security & Governance turns on how much cross-platform discovery coverage your existing secrets vault and CASB combination already provides, and how far ahead specialized vendor fingerprinting is compared to what your team can piece together; it's a nascent category, so that gap is still meaningful but narrowing.

Domain: Security & Compliance
Function: Engineering, IT & AI
Industries: Cross-industry

Last assessed June 2026 · re-scored quarterly via The Continuum.

Build it, buy it, or bridge?

	Build it	Buy it	Bridge (buy, then extend)
Cost shape	Secrets vault + CASB covers 50-60% of surface; purpose-built NHI adds cost	Starter tiers ~$50K/yr on AWS Marketplace; M&A consolidation resetting pricing	Existing vault and CASB as base; buy NHI for discovery gaps and AI-agent scope
Time to value	Weeks to extend existing tooling; months to close discovery gaps	Days to initial inventory; weeks to full governance workflow	Fast start from existing infrastructure; layered NHI coverage added incrementally
Differentiation captured	Custom governance rules tuned to org's specific workload identity topology	Vendor fingerprinting database built across millions of device observations	Platform discovery; org-specific policy and remediation workflows on top
AI feasibility today	AI-agent behavior analysis is ML-buildable; cross-platform discovery integration is not	Vendors have 2-3 year head starts on proprietary fingerprinting databases	Buy discovery; build AI-agent governance extensions on top
Who it fits	Teams with mature secrets vault and CASB coverage, primarily needing anomaly enrichment	Orgs with complex SaaS estates, AI-agent proliferation, or limited NHI visibility	Security teams extending existing infrastructure toward AI-agent governance

The B4 call

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When building Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance makes sense

Building is worth considering for teams that already run a secrets vault and CASB combination covering most of their NHI surface, and who primarily need enrichment and anomaly detection on existing data rather than cross-platform discovery from scratch. That combination covers approximately 50-60% of the typical NHI governance use case. Custom governance logic, rotation policy enforcement, and anomaly alerting can be layered on top of existing infrastructure without a dedicated NHI platform. The build case also gets more interesting as AI-agent behavior analysis matures; teams deploying their own agents can build governance instrumentation directly into the agent framework rather than relying on an external scanner. Where it breaks down is discovery: if you don't have full visibility into OAuth grants across your SaaS estate, cross-cloud workload identity, and API key sprawl, the discovery problem requires breadth that purpose-built vendors have built from millions of observations.

When buying Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance makes sense

Buying earns its keep when the organization has a complex SaaS and cloud estate with limited visibility into OAuth grants, service account sprawl, or AI-agent credentials. Vendors like Oasis Security and Entro Security have built cross-platform discovery from observations across many customers, giving them fingerprinting coverage that a single organization's deployment can't replicate. The category is actively maturing, and the vendor landscape is shifting fast: Cisco acquired Astrix at approximately $400M. Organizations evaluating NHI platforms should account for the consolidation trajectory and consider whether the vendor they choose will still be independent in 18 months. For orgs with specific AI-agent governance requirements, the right fit depends on where your exposure is concentrated: workload identity, token governance, or OAuth grant remediation each point toward different vendors.

Service accounts, API keys, OAuth grants, and workload credentials are proliferating faster than most security teams can track manually. The NHI security category is still early. Vendors like Oasis Security, Entro Security, and Astrix Security (now inside Cisco) have two-to-three year head starts on proprietary device fingerprinting and cross-plane discovery. That's a real advantage, though the category is actively maturing and the vendor landscape will look different in 18 months as platform vendors absorb point solutions.

Buying earns its keep when the organization has a complex SaaS and cloud estate, limited visibility into OAuth grants across tools, or specific AI-agent governance requirements. The build case gets more interesting for teams that already run a secrets vault and CASB combination covering most of their NHI surface, and who primarily need enrichment and anomaly detection on top of existing data. Aembit and Token Security approach different parts of the problem, workload identity and token governance respectively, so the right fit depends on where your exposure is concentrated.

Representative vendors

Oasis SecurityEntro Security and 3 more, scored in B4 Pro

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Frequently asked

What is Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance?: Non-Human Identity security and governance software discovers, inventories, and monitors service accounts, API keys, OAuth grants, machine credentials, and workload identities across cloud, SaaS, and on-premises environments. As AI agents and microservices multiply, the category addresses the growing problem of untracked, over-privileged machine credentials that create lateral movement risk and compliance gaps.
When does building Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance make sense?: Building makes sense for teams with mature secrets vault and CASB coverage who primarily need anomaly enrichment on existing data. The discovery problem across complex SaaS estates requires breadth that purpose-built vendors have built from millions of observations.
When does buying Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance make sense?: Buying earns its keep when the organization has limited visibility into OAuth grants, service account sprawl, or AI-agent credentials across a complex SaaS estate. The category is early enough that vendor consolidation should factor into the decision.
What are the main Non-Human Identity (NHI) Security & Governance vendors?: Representative vendors include Oasis Security, Entro Security, Aembit, Token Security. B4 Pro scores the full set.

The B4 Index scores every software category on two axes, strategic differentiation and AI feasibility, to classify it Build, Buy, Bridge, or Beware. See the full methodology.

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