Securely accessing external accounts with AWS IAM Identity Center

This article provides a step-by-step guide for securely integrating external AWS accounts with AWS IAM Identity Center to enable single sign-on access, particularly for researchers and government agencies accessing Open Data Sponsorship Program resources.

• Use SAML 2.0 federation to establish trust between IAM Identity Center and external AWS accounts
• Create custom IAM Identity Center application and download SAML metadata file
• Configure SAML identity provider in external account using downloaded metadata
• Create IAM role with appropriate permissions for federated users
• Map SAML attributes linking Identity Center application to external IAM role
• Assign users to application and verify successful federation and access
• Eliminates need for separate access keys; enables centralized user management
• Provides granular access control through IAM roles and policies

This solution enables secure, centralized access to external AWS accounts while maintaining strict security controls and organizational policy alignment.