Security | Threat Detection | Cyberattacks | DevSecOps | Compliance

Your business depends on the protection of your most critical assets. Prioritizing Tier 0 assets and deploying a tiered administration model is a great way to strengthen the security protecting what matters most – your identities. We will discuss both of these concepts in detail in this post.

The 2024 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) found that compromised credentials consistently appeared as a key attack enabler – with almost 77% of web app breaches enabled by stolen credentials. Organizations are scrambling to protect credentials, and Just-In-Time (JIT) access has emerged as an effective strategy to address these challenges. JIT access grants elevated permissions only when necessary, minimizing the attack surface and reducing the risk of unauthorized access.

Identity and access management (IAM) is part of a world where the only constant is change. Whether from emerging technologies and new cyber threats, or unpredictable human behaviors and shifting business priorities – cybersecurity is in a state of permanent flux. These developments have caused many cybersecurity teams to harden their defenses with methods such as identity-based and passwordless authentication.

If organizations are complying with their regulatory obligations, why are they still being breached? This obvious question exposes a paradox at the heart of everything we do in cybersecurity. It seems that the more we regulate, the more compliance requirements and frameworks we produce, and the more we nurture cybersecurity awareness, the more cyber incidents we face. What’s going on? Where’s the cause and where’s the effect?

In today's fast-paced digital environment, organizations face a growing need to protect sensitive systems and data while maintaining operational efficiency and driving productivity. One Identity Safeguard, a comprehensive Privileged Access Management (PAM) solution, not only addresses security concerns, but also offers significant business advantages that go beyond basic compliance and risk mitigation.

Once upon a time, ordering software would involve a physical delivery with a manual setup and availability on designated machines. The rise of cloud technology changed all that, with subscription-based SaaS growing 300% during 2012–2018. This shift in business model, from owning software to renting it, also meant a change in provisioning. Instead of relying on internal resources and expertise, organizations could simply tap into their external partners and providers.

Active Directory (AD) is prolific, with an estimated deployment at 90% of organizations worldwide. Meanwhile, Entra ID deployment is increasing, as is the prevalence of Hybrid environments which deploy both. The widespread use of AD makes the repository a target for cybercriminals. Although rarely discussed, identity, access privileges, and cybercrime are intrinsically linked, with 90% of organizations being victims of at least one identity-related incident in 2023.

“3,205 reported data compromises in the U.S. in 2023, a 78% increase over 2022. 1 In our opinion, this doesn’t even account for unreported breaches. So, it’s no secret that cyber threats are increasing exponentially. According to Gartner, 70% of breached organizations reported significant business disruption. 1 Clearly, the more we include technology in our lives, the more threat actors will exploit digital vulnerabilities that can stall or even shut down an organization.

Identities, computers and groups all need access to resources. But only enough to fulfill a role, and only for as long as they need it. AD Admins, IT leaders, VPs and CISOs recognize this as a foundational part of Zero Trust least privilege models – and as one of the biggest challenges for enterprises. That’s because using native tools for privilege management is complex.

There’s an unfortunate truth about applications and access in the enterprise. Many applications are underutilized. This means patches and updates can fall down the to-do list of already-stretched IT service desks. Naturally, this increases the vulnerabilities – and opportunities for attackers. Risks are compounded when many users retain access they no longer need, especially when it’s access to the most critical and sensitive resources.