Privileged Access Management (PAM) is one of organizations' most important cybersecurity strategies. The rising identity breaches have made it crucial to understand PAM and to save not only an organization’s core business but also its reputation, and customer trust.
What is Privileged Access Management?
PAM is the set of policies, procedures, and technologies that organizations opt for to take care of privileged accounts and their access. The main aim is to secure credentials, data, and resources from any form of anonymous access. By all means PAM solutions try to prevent data-related thefts, breaches, and internal security risks caused by unauthorized access.
What is a Privileged Account?
The concept of a Privileged Account is the primary component of PAM. It is basically a user account that has extra privileges, granting them access to critical systems, sensitive information, or administrative functions. For example, root or administrator access to servers, domain admin accounts in Active Directory, or accounts with special privileges in databases.
An organization usually has a number of privileged accounts, making it difficult to keep a check on the access mechanism. In its absence, the security is risked making it difficult to detect and respond timely to upcoming threats and anonymous attacks.
PAM Solutions to Tackle Security Issues
To handle security risks and attacks, PAM solutions offer a central platform to manage privileged accounts and access. They offer the following features:
Access Control
Access control is the critical one. It allows organizations to define detailed access policies and permissions based on the principle of least privilege. That means a minimum level of access is provided that is necessary to perform job duties. It reduces the chances of unauthorized access and minimizes the potential damage caused by insider threats.
It adds an extra layer of protection to the organization’s assets, helps maintain the integrity of systems, and prevents privilege misuse or abuse, even if a user's credentials are compromised.
Securing Privileged Account Credentials
Managing privileged account credentials is the highest priority in security. Therefore, PAM solutions use various methods to protect passwords, such as secure storing and encrypting passwords, regular changes of passwords, and strong enforcement of password policies. Extra security is ensured by MFA.
Privilege elevation capabilities
PAM tools allow for privilege elevation where there is a need to escalate privileges. This makes it possible for employees to carry out their responsibilities without unnecessary barriers.
For example, when there is any need to install software or make system changes, the access privileges can be changed temporarily to complete the tasks.
After the work is finished, the privileges are automatically returned to the original settings thereby minimizing the chance of breach.
Session Monitoring and Recording
To track suspicious or malicious activities, session monitoring, and recording it becomes really essential. Reviewing these privileged account access on time enables timely response and investigation, reducing the risk of potential data breaches or system compromises.
Conclusion
With the ever-growing threats, adopting PAM solutions is an inevitable part of an organization’s cybersecurity strategy. In this era, where hackers are constantly looking to access privileged accounts to steal data PAM solutions ensure that not only surface attacks are prevented but enhance the entire security posture.
IDMEXPRESS helps organizations provide customized Identity and Access Management IAM and cybersecurity solutions. Contact us today to protect your organizations from these uninvited threats and attacks.
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