What is Privileged Access Management (PAM)?
Privileged Access Management, a definition
Privileged Access Management (PAM) is a cybersecurity solution that addresses the management of high-level access rights within an organization’s digital infrastructure. It focuses on recording the sessions and controlling and monitoring privileged accounts which include administrator and system accounts. incorporate several key functionalities like real time monitoring and recording the sessions of users. They can manage and secure privileged credentials too, often using vaulting technologies to store and rotate complex passwords. Privileged Access Management tool also commonly use strong authentication mechanisms for accessing privileged accounts, such as multi-factor authentication or biometrics. Many PAM tools can integrate with existing identity management systems and support automated provisioning and deprovisioning of privileged access.
A core principle of PAM is the principle of least privilege, where users and processes are granted only the minimum access rights necessary for their roles. This approach aims to reduce the potential impact of a compromised account. Privileged Access Management solutions often provide reporting and analytics capabilities, offering insights into privileged access usage and potential anomalies.
What are Privileged Accounts ?
What is a privileged account
Privileges are permissions granted to users, accounts, or even processes within an IT system. Those permissions allow them to perform specific actions or grant specific access to restricted resources. These elevated permissions go beyond those of standard user accounts and can include customable rights such as modifying system configurations, installing software, accessing sensitive data, or making changes to other user accounts.
Privileges are created and assigned by system administrators or through automated processes based on organizational policies and roles. Privileged credentials are the authentication tokens (such as usernames and passwords, SSH keys, or access tokens) that grant access to these elevated permissions.
These credentials are particularly sensitive because they provide expanded capabilities within an IT environment.
Examples of privileged credentials: local or domain administrator account passwords, root account credentials for Unix/Linux systems, application admin accounts, and service account passwords used by critical business applications.
Due to their powerful nature, privileged credentials are prime targets for cybercriminals and insider threats, making their proper management and protection a critical aspect of an organization’s security strategy.
Types of privileged accounts
- Domain administrator accounts: Highest-level control across an entire domain.
- Local administrator accounts: Admin access to specific servers or workstations.
- Application administrator accounts: Full access to specific applications and their data.
- Service accounts: Used by applications to interact with the operating system.
- Business privileged user accounts: High-level privileges based on job responsibilities.
- Emergency/Break glass/Firecall accounts: Temporary admin access for unprivileged users during crises.
- Active Directory/domain service accounts: Manage domain-level tasks like password changes.
- Application accounts: Used for database access, batch jobs, scripts, and inter-application communication.
Difference between Privileged Access Management and Privileged Account Management
The nomenclature for this category of software is still in flux. Privileged Access Management can also be referred to as “Privileged Account Management” or “Privileged Session Management”.
For this reason, the acronym PAM is sometimes also known as PSM or PxM.
We could say that Privileged Account Management is a subset of Privileged Access Management that specifically deals with the lifecycle management of privileged accounts themselves, including creation, modification, and deletion of these accounts. Privileged Access Management is more a overarching framework that includes Privileged Account Management as one of its key components, along with other elements such as session monitoring, access control, and audit logging.
Why use PAM ?
PAM keeps your organization safe from accidental or deliberate misuse of privileged access. This is particularly relevant if your organization is growing. The bigger and more complex your organization’s IT systems get, the more privileged users you have. These include employees, contractors, remote or even automated users. Many organizations have 2-3 times as many privileged users as employees!
Compliance
Many industry standards and regulations, such as GDPR, HIPAA, PCI DSS, and SOX, mandate strict control over access to sensitive data and systems. PAM solutions help organizations achieve and maintain compliance by providing detailed audit trails, enforcing least privilege principles, and implementing strong access controls. By using Privileged Access Management software, companies can demonstrate during a audit that they have measures in place to protect sensitive information, thereby avoiding potential fines and penalties.
Control and monitoring
PAM empowers organizations with control and monitoring over accounts, offering IT teams the ability to track and record all activities performed with privileged credentials. This provides visibility and helps to detect unusual or suspicious behavior that could signal a potential security breach or insider threat. With features such as real-time session monitoring and auditing for forensic analysis, PAM solutions enhance proactive threat detection by raising alarms when malicious activity is detected and can terminate sessions to prevent further harm. By implementing these advanced control and monitoring measures, organizations can effectively mitigate the risk of unauthorized access and safeguard their IT environment against malicious activities.
Gain efficiency when sharing access
Instead of sharing passwords directly, PAM solutions allow administrators to grant temporary, controlled access to privileged accounts. This approach eliminates the need for password sharing, reduces the risk of leaks and simplifies access revocation. Many PAM tools offer features like just-in-time access to critical systems, where elevated permissions are granted only for a specific duration and purpose. This not only enhances security but also improves workflow efficiency, especially in scenarios involving third-party vendors.
Exemples of cybersecurity breaches involving privileged access
Internal Threats
Privileged access misuse by insiders has led to significant security breaches. For example, in 2019, a former Cisco employee accessed the company’s cloud infrastructure without authorization after leaving the organization, deleting 456 virtual machines and disrupting services for over 16,000 WebEx Teams users. This incident highlights the importance of promptly revoking access for departing employees and maintaining strict control over privileged accounts. Another case involved a Marriott employee who, in 2020, abused their privileged access to steal sensitive information of approximately 5.2 million guests, demonstrating the potential damage that can be caused by malicious insiders with elevated permissions.
External Threats
External attackers often target privileged accounts as a gateway to sensitive systems. The 2013 Target data breach, which exposed 40 million customer credit card details, was initiated through compromised credentials of an HVAC vendor with privileged access.
In 2014, the Sony Pictures hack led to the leak of confidential data and emails after attackers gained access using stolen administrative credentials. More recently, the 2020 SolarWinds supply chain attack, which affected numerous organizations including U.S. government agencies, exploited privileged access to distribute malware through software updates.
These incidents underscore the critical need for robust Privileged Access Management solution to defend against sophisticated external and internal threats targeting privileged accounts.
How does Privileged Access Management Works ?
Components of a PAM Solution
Access Manager
This Privileged Access Management module governs access to privileged accounts. It is a single point of policy definition and policy enforcement for privileged access management. A privileged user requests access to a system through the Access Manager. The Access Manager knows which systems the user can access and at what level of privilege. A super admin can add/modify/delete privileged user accounts on the Access Manager. This approach reduces the risk that a former employee will retain access to a critical system.
Password Vault
The Password Vault securely stores and manages privileged account credentials. It prevents users from directly knowing or handling sensitive passwords. This prevents a manual override on a physical device, for example. Instead, the PAM system keeps these passwords in a secure vault and opens access to a system for the privileged user once he has cleared the Access Manager.
Session Manager
The Session Manager monitors and records activities during privileged access sessions. It provides an audit trail of all actions taken by privileged users, allowing for detailed review and analysis. Session managers are the cornerstone of security monitoring, incident response and compliance reporting.
Universal Tunneling
Universal Tunneling encapsulates industrial protocols (like Modbus, Profinet, Bacnet, and EtherCAT) within a secure SSH tunnel, ensuring safe communication across your OT infrastructure. By integrating Universal Tunneling into your PAM solution, you extend the same level of security and oversight to the OT environment, effectively protecting critical industrial processes from unauthorized access and potential cyber threats.
Core Functionalities
Identification and Discovery: PAM solutions identify and catalog privileged accounts across the organization’s IT infrastructure.
Access Control: Implement and enforce least privilege principles, ensuring users have only the access they need.
Password Management: Automate password rotation, enforce strong password policies, and manage password checkout processes.
Multi-factor Authentication: Require additional verification for privileged access to enhance security.
Session Monitoring and Recording: Track and log all activities during privileged sessions for audit and security purposes.
Just-in-Time (JIT) Access: Grant temporary, elevated access only when needed and for a limited duration.
Reporting and Analytics: Generate detailed reports on privileged access activities and potential security anomalies.
Integration: Connect with existing security and IT management tools for a cohesive security ecosystem.
PAM Best Practices
Establish a Comprehensive Privilege Management Policy
- Define clear policies for provisioning and de-provisioning privileged access
- Address inventory and classification of privileged identities and accounts
Implement the Principle of Least Privilege
- Remove unnecessary admin rights on endpoints and servers
- Enforce separation of privileges and duties
Discover and Manage All Privileged Accounts
- Conduct thorough discovery across all platforms and systems
- Bring all privileged accounts under centralized management
Enforce Strong Password Security
- Implement password vaults and rotation policies
- Eliminate embedded/hard-coded credentials
Monitor, Audit, and Analyze Privileged Activities
- Implement privileged session monitoring and management
- Utilize privileged user behavior analytics
Implement Just-in-Time and Just-Enough Access
- Use temporary privilege escalation when needed
- Implement dynamic, context-based access controls
Secure and Automate Privileged Task Workflows
- Implement role-based access control
- Automate privileged processes to reduce human error
Segment Networks and Systems
- Implement network segmentation to contain potential breaches
- Use microsegmentation for granular access control
Continuously Improve and Adapt
- Regularly audit and review PAM policies and implementations
- Stay updated on emerging threats and adjust strategies accordingly
9 Benefits of Implementing PAM
- Achieve compliance and show it (advocate about it)
- Free up your IT teams for higher value-added tasks.
- Strengthen your customers’ trust
- protects against internal and external threats
- Enhanced operational performance
- Satisfy cyber insurance requirements
- Preserve your company’s reputation
How to start your PAM journey?
Start with the Basics: Privileged Account and Session Management (PASM)
- Implement a password vault for centralized credential management
- Set up privileged password management
- Establish privileged session management and monitoring
Expand to Privilege Elevation and Delegation Management (PEDM)
- Implement the principle of least privilege and control processes through fine-grained policies
- Manage every workstation policy from a centralized console
- Implement folder rules and protect important data from being modified
Enhance Remote Access Security
- Implement secure remote access (SRA) solutions
- Address vendor privileged access management (VPAM)
- Secure cloud access
Expand and scale
Implement Cloud Infrastructure Entitlements Management (CIEM)
- Right-size cloud entitlements across multiple cloud platforms
- Automate the remediation of excess privileged access
Automate PAM Processes
- Implement automated discovery of privileged accounts and assets
- Set up automated management and monitoring of privileged access
- Streamline workflows to reduce administrative complexity
Continuously Evolve Your PAM Strategy
- Integrate PAM with identity threat detection and response (ITDR)
- Regularly assess and improve your PAM maturity
- Scale your PAM solution across the enterprise
Privileged Access Management (PAM) VS Identity Management
Privileged Access Management or PAM is sometimes confused with the broader category of Identity Management. There is some overlap, but the two subjects are separate and quite different. PAM is focused on privileged user access. Identity management concerns authenticating and authorizing any user who needs access to a system. A bank teller who logs into a banking application is authenticated by an IdM solution such as Microsoft Active Directory. Active Directory, which is based on the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) standard, is not well suited to PAM. It’s a great product. It’s just not meant to control privileged users. Not all devices with privileged user accounts integrate easily with Active Directory, for example.
IdM solutions are also often designed with openness in mind. PAM tends to be closed, on purpose. For instance, the OAuth standard enables an enterprise application to authorize access to a mobile app belonging to a third party. (E.g. a bank system uses OAuth to permit a mobile user to see the balance on a stock trading account managed by a different entity.) Or, IdM solutions leverage “security assertions” like SAML to “vouch” for a system user as he or she requests access to data belonging to third parties. PAM does not use security assertions or third party authorization standards. They are neither needed nor wanted in PAM.
