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HomeDocsClaude Documentation 5 Oct 2026
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How agent identity works changedclaude-tag/concepts/agent-identity

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Upstream edited this page at 5 Oct 2026 19:41 UTC, give or take a minute or two: the time comes from Anthropic’s own sitemap rather than from a commit. This site recorded the change at 5 Oct 2026 20:07 UTC.

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1111In Slack channels, and in [group DMs](#group-dms) that include Claude, Claude acts with its own service accounts, rather than as a specific user. An organization Owner [provisions this identity](/docs/claude-tag/admins/setup-overview#give-claude-access-to-your-tools), so Claude has its own account in each system it works in: the Claude app in Slack, the Claude GitHub App on GitHub, and a service account in every other connected tool. Actions it takes are attributed to those accounts; for example, posts come from the Claude app and pull requests show the Claude GitHub App as the author. Claude can also use your own claude.ai connectors for a task you hand it in a channel, after you allow it. See [Personal connectors in a channel](#personal-connectors-in-a-channel).
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13In one-to-one direct messages (DMs) between `@Claude` and a user who has connected a Claude account, the provisioned identity does not apply. A DM session runs on [the individual's own claude.ai account](#direct-message-channels) instead, with their personal connectors. A pull request opened from a DM is authored by the Claude GitHub App, the same as in channels, though the session can only work with repositories connected on that user's own account. An Owner can turn off DMs for the whole organization; see [Allow or disable direct messages](/docs/claude-tag/admins/restrict-access#allow-or-disable-direct-messages). For DMs from users who haven't connected a Claude account, see [Direct messages from members without a Claude account](/docs/claude-tag/admins/restrict-access#direct-messages-from-members-without-a-claude-account).
13In one-to-one direct messages (DMs) between `@Claude` and a user who has connected a Claude account, the session runs on [the individual's own claude.ai account](#direct-message-channels), with their personal connectors. A pull request opened from a DM is authored by the Claude GitHub App, the same as in channels, though the session can only work with repositories connected on that user's own account. An Owner can turn off DMs for the whole organization; see [Allow or disable direct messages](/docs/claude-tag/admins/restrict-access#allow-or-disable-direct-messages). For DMs from users who haven't connected a Claude account, see [Direct messages from members without a Claude account](/docs/claude-tag/admins/restrict-access#direct-messages-from-members-without-a-claude-account).
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1515<Note>
1616 How Claude behaves in channels (its standing instructions, plugins, and channel memory) is configured separately from its identity; see [custom instructions](/docs/claude-tag/admins/attach-to-scope#add-custom-instructions), [plugins](/docs/claude-tag/admins/add-connections#attach-plugins), and [memory](/docs/claude-tag/users/memory) for more information.
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109109## Direct message channels
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111A one-to-one DM with Claude works differently from a channel. A DM session runs with your own claude.ai account, the same way a Claude Code session on the web does, using your own connectors and credentials, with results attributed to you (pull requests excepted; the Claude GitHub App authors those from DMs too). The diagram contrasts with the channel path above; the sandbox is the same engine, but everything around it is yours.
111A one-to-one DM with Claude works differently from a channel. A DM session runs with your own claude.ai account, the same way a Claude Code session on the web does, using your own connectors and credentials, with results attributed to you (pull requests excepted; the Claude GitHub App authors those from DMs too). The diagram contrasts with the channel path above.
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113113<img className="block dark:hidden" src="https://mintcdn.com/claude-ai/5JFKyLlO7sHMMf5J/images/claude-tag/diagrams/dm-identity.svg?fit=max&auto=format&n=5JFKyLlO7sHMMf5J&q=85&s=d4089034f46e4a760f9fac9d36a689cc" alt="Diagram showing how a DM session reaches your systems. A message to Claude in a direct message runs in a session sandbox, in a zone labeled Anthropic's infrastructure, the same engine as a channel session, but it runs with your identity. From there it reaches your systems through your own connectors and accounts, like GitHub or Drive, using your own credentials. A dashed return path shows results posting back in the DM, as you." width="1000" height="270" data-path="images/claude-tag/diagrams/dm-identity.svg" />
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123123| Attribution | The agent's accounts, in each tool's audit log | Your name, except pull requests, which the Claude GitHub App authors |
124124| Billing | The organization | Your seat |
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126Three of those differences are worth spelling out.
126Two of those differences are worth spelling out.
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128128* **Connectors.** The [connectors on your account](/docs/connectors/getting-started) are available, including MCP servers you've added.
129129* **Billing.** Usage bills to your seat rather than the organization's service key.
130* **Channel-side configuration.** It doesn't follow you in; the agent's connectors and repository grants don't apply in one-to-one DMs.
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132131DM work runs under your credentials, so most of it is attributed to you and can reach only what your own accounts can. Pull requests are the exception: Claude authors them as the Claude GitHub App from DMs too, so a repository's history shows the same author either way, while the repositories it can reach are still only the ones connected on your own account.
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