#Japan #Tokyo #Authlete #Kakuhashi #OAuth2.0

Introduction

In a significant stride towards enhancing the healthcare ecosystem, Authlete, a company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, has been selected by Kakuhashi, a prominent player in the healthcare software sector, to provide its comprehensive OAuth and OpenID Connect (OIDC) backend services. This collaboration marks a pivotal moment as Kakuhashi expands its multi-product offerings, aiming to solidify its position as a robust provider for various stakeholders within the medical industry.

Kakuhashi's Medical Product Suite

Kakuhashi focuses on developing vertical SaaS tailored for the healthcare sector, catering to the needs of pharmacies and other medical institutions. Their offerings include electronic medical record systems, patient follow-up systems, drug inventory management, business intelligence systems, and services for secondary drug distribution. The integration of Authlete is set to enhance the authentication framework supporting these diverse products, paving the way for extensive product diversification in the future.

Background and Challenges

Healthcare institutions need to adhere to stringent regulations established by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. These regulations necessitate advanced features such as two-factor authentication, audit log recording, and high availability in authentication systems. Initially, Kakuhashi relied on external services to manage ID and authentication data. However, as the company expanded, managing authentication for each individual product became increasingly inefficient.

To tackle these mounting challenges, Kakuhashi decided to build a common authentication framework and establish a dedicated team focused on managing authentication and authorization.

Requirements for the Common Authentication Framework

The new authentication framework must meet several critical requirements, particularly given the sensitive nature of health-related information:

1. Portability: The authentication system is essential for business continuity. Thus, it must ensure flexibility for future migrations, should the need arise.
2. Compliance and Security: Compliance with established guidelines, including audit log maintenance, business continuity planning, and the implementation of two-factor authentication, is vital.
3. Availability: As a provider of healthcare systems, Kakuhashi requires the authentication framework to maintain operations even during disasters.
4. Operational Costs: The solution must enable a small team to manage authentication processes effectively over the long term, irrespective of business fluctuations.

Existing ID and authentication services failed to meet these security and compliance requirements. This led Kakuhashi to explore upgrading to Identity as a Service (IDaaS) or open-source software solutions, both of which presented their respective challenges.

Choosing Authlete

Ultimately, Kakuhashi opted for Authlete due to its ability to integrate OAuth and OIDC functionalities while retaining existing data and systems. This Backend as a Service (BaaS) architecture allows Kakuhashi to leverage the following benefits:

• - Expertise and Support: Authlete offers a trusted service tailored specifically for OAuth and OIDC, complemented by operational support in Japanese.
• - Cost-Effective Operations: Management of the token lifecycle and implementation complexities can be outsourced to Authlete.
• - Multi-Region Support: This aspect is crucial from a business continuity perspective, ensuring that services remain operational across different regions.

Implementation and Benefits

The common authentication framework powered by Authlete began operations in July 2025. By consolidating authentication functions into a shared infrastructure, Kakuhashi can now manage OAuth and OIDC protocols efficiently while meeting stringent security requirements. The continued use of Amazon Cognito allows for a smooth transition between existing and new systems.

As a result, Kakuhashi has significantly lowered its authentication implementation costs, enabling product teams to focus on delivering core value and business logic.

Future Directions

Kakuhashi's Authentication and Authorization Management Team Lead, Yukisui Iwasa, highlighted the advantages of this partnership: “By entrusting the implementation and operation of OAuth and OIDC to Authlete, we have achieved consistent high availability and security. Standardizing our authentication framework has significantly reduced implementation costs while allowing our product teams to concentrate on what truly matters.”

Kakuhashi is committed to further enhancing the common authentication framework to remain responsive to evolving requirements, ensuring ongoing compliance and security.

About Authlete

Authlete specializes in optimizing and simplifying the implementation of OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect (OIDC) through its web API services. Developed by experts involved in international standard specifications, Authlete is recognized for its advanced security compliance with standards like FAPI and CIBA, making it a go-to solution across multiple sectors, including finance, media, retail, and technology.

To explore more about use cases and customer stories, visit the Authlete website.