ISPM stands for Identity Security Posture Management. It is a continuous process for discovering identities, permissions, and configuration risks across cloud, SaaS, and hybrid environments, then reducing the exposure that those settings create. Instead of focusing only on incidents, ISPM looks at the identity layer itself: users, groups, roles, service accounts, MFA coverage, dormant accounts, and overprivileged access.
ISPM matters because attackers often use valid accounts rather than exploits. A stale account, weak authentication policy, or unnecessary admin role can provide a clean path to privilege escalation, lateral movement, or persistence. In defense, ISPM helps teams find shadow access, remove excess privileges, and prioritize the identities that create the biggest blast radius. It complements ITDR, which detects and responds to identity abuse after it starts.