Service accounts for Polaris

Learn how to create and manage service accounts for Polaris from the Polaris user interface.

Service accounts are a type of account used to perform automated tasks on behalf of a user or application. They are typically used in scenarios where a user is not present to provide authentication, such as in CI/CD pipelines or automated scripts.

Service accounts have their own set of credentials (tokens) that can be used for authentication.

In Polaris, service accounts are managed by Organization Administrators, who can create and delete service accounts as needed.

Tip: Instead of using the Polaris user interface, you can manage service accounts with APIs. See Service Accounts for Polaris for more information.

Service account token expiration

Service account tokens expire after one year from the creation date, and will also expire if unused for 30 days. You'll need to create new tokens before expiration to ensure your automated processes continue to function without interruption.

Monitor service account usage

Organization Administrators can monitor service account activity on the Audit Logs page (My Organization > Audit Logs). When an action is performed using a service account token, the service account's friendly name appears in the Token Name column. Select Service Account Tokens using the Event Type dropdown to view events related to service accounts.

Using service account tokens

Service account tokens function identically to user access tokens for authentication purposes. After you create a service account, you can use the service account's token for:

  • Authentication in requests made to Polaris APIs.
  • Authentication in CI pipelines that use the Bridge CLI (and Black Duck Security Scan plugins).
Note: Service account tokens can be used wherever access tokens are used.