# What is single sign-on (SSO)? Between corporate applications

> Single sign-on (SSO) lets an employee log in once and move to the organization's other applications without entering a password again.

Source page: https://dblinx.net/en/rehberler/tek-oturum-acma-sso

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Identity

# What is single sign-on (SSO)? Moving between corporate applications without re-entering a password

Single sign-on (SSO) lets an employee log in once and move between the organization's other applications without entering a password again. Set up correctly, it eliminates password fatigue and makes it possible to revoke access everywhere from a single place.

3 min readPublished: 17.10.2026

An employee opens their email, their files and a few work applications over the course of a day. If each one asks for a separate password, either the same password gets used everywhere, or passwords end up written on a piece of paper. Both are risky. Single sign-on (SSO) solves this: a person proves their identity once, and the other applications trust that proof.

## Why does single sign-on matter?

- The employee only has to remember one password; choosing a strong one becomes easier.
- Password reset requests drop.
- A departing person's access is closed from one place; no account stays open in an application that was forgotten about.
- Login records are gathered in one place, making a suspicious login easier to spot.

## How does SSO work?

Behind the scenes there's an identity provider. When a person logs in, their session opens at the identity provider. When they want to move to another application, that application accepts not a password but a short-lived token issued by the identity provider.

- The person logs into the first application.
- When moving to a second application, a short-lived token for that application is requested from the identity provider.
- The second application verifies the token with the identity provider and opens its own session.
- The token is used once and expires quickly.

## What should a secure SSO setup include?

- **The token's lifetime must be short.** Seconds, not minutes; it should become invalid as soon as it's used once.
- **The switch shouldn't grant new permissions.** If the person has no access in the target application, SSO shouldn't let them in.
- **Applications shouldn't see each other's sessions.** One application shouldn't carry another's session information.
- **Closing access must take effect immediately.** A person removed from the organization shouldn't be able to move to another application even if they have an open session.

**Note**SSO doesn't protect the password itself; a single compromised password opens the door to every application. That's why SSO must be paired with a password policy that screens out weak passwords, and with a lockout after repeated failed attempts.

## How does single sign-on work across the DBLinx family?

- **A single SmartID password:** Employees sign in to SmartMail, SmartFiles and other Smart products with the same identity.
- **Switching between products:** No password is asked when switching to another product from the product menu; a single-use token, valid for only 60 seconds, is generated for the switch. The first product never sees the target product's session.
- **Never exceeds permission:** If the person has no active membership in the target product, the switch is refused. A person whose access has been closed in the organization dashboard can't move to another product even with an open session.

[Document: switching between products](https://dblinx.net/en/belgeler/baslarken/urunler-arasi-gecis)[Ecosystem](https://dblinx.net/en/ekosistem)

## Frequently asked questions

Is SSO secure?

It's secure when set up with a short-lived, single-use token and access control in the target application. A weak password is SSO's biggest risk; it must be used together with a password policy.

Is SSO the same thing as two-step verification?

No. SSO is about how many times you log in; two-step verification is about how strongly that login is proven. The two can be used together.

How is a departing employee's access closed?

In a setup using SSO, access is closed at the identity provider; the person can't log into any application or move between them.

## All products, one identity

Have your employees sign in to email, files and other Smart products with a single identity; manage access from a single dashboard.

[Request a quote](https://dblinx.net/en/teklif-iste)[Get in touch](https://dblinx.net/en/iletisim)

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