Single sign-on (SSO) allows a user to log into multiple systems with one set of credentials — typically managed by an enterprise identity provider like Okta, Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD), Google Workspace, or Ping Identity. For B2B customer portals, SSO is increasingly expected by enterprise customers whose IT teams manage employee identities centrally.
The main SSO protocols are SAML 2.0 (enterprise standard) and OIDC (modern, OAuth2-based). SCIM handles user provisioning and deprovisioning alongside SSO.
SSO answers “how does this user authenticate?” It does not by itself answer “which customer account and records may this user access?” The portal still needs tenant mapping, role-based access control, session controls, and a safe fallback when an identity-provider configuration changes.
During procurement, verify whether SSO is available per customer tenant, whether multiple identity providers can coexist, and whether configuration and testing are self-service or vendor-managed.
For the implementation patterns, see our SSO feature page and portal authentication guide.