AI Era: Identity is the New Control Plane, Says Quest VP

Identity is now the new control plane in the AI era. As artificial intelligence grows in businesses, non-human identities are creating a rapidly expanding attack surface. Rakesh Shah, VP of Product Management at Quest Software, explains that attackers are increasingly using identity as their main entry point. This is because companies are deploying more AI agents and service accounts. These often have high privileges and limited oversight. Shah says security leaders must first see all identities in their systems to assess risk and govern access. He stresses that identity should be treated like critical infrastructure, continuously defended and observed. He adds that when identity fails, the business fails. Shah also highlighted why non-human identities are a preferred target for threat actors. He discussed the need for organizations to inventory AI agents, understand risks, and set up governance frameworks for machine identities. This is important for balancing AI innovation with security and compliance.