Privileged access management
Last Updated on July 17, 2024
Privileged Access Management (PAM) is about safely authenticating a unique user online, to give them relevant access, data, and permissions. It is a simple but key concept in modern cybersecurity.
PAM is, put differently, exactly what most cyber fraudsters want. To somehow acquire PAM to your account, to then easily steal your personal data, execute fraudulent transactions on your behalf, and much more.
Privileged Access Management is the spearhead of cybersecurity: Any application security manager wants to give all the valid users, as much access and easy UX as possible, whilst restraining as much as possible the bad agents. How they do so, is by engineering the best PAM policy they can.
What is PAM? (Privileged Access Management)
Privileged Access Management (PAM) is the cornerstone of IT security strategies: It is about letting the valid users of your application access as easily as possible, as safely as possible, to use the platform with as few blocks and authentication points as possible to avoid ruining their UX.
Put differently it is about cybersecurity excellence, ensuring all the valid users can access and none of the bad ones (or very few) at the least expense of UX and authentication protocols.
A sound PAM policy will let you access your fintech account with a safe login protocol, perform as many tasks and transactions as safely and easily as possible, whilst keeping out bad agents.
The Role of PAM in Cybersecurity:
Modern software based companies, such as SaaS in lawtech, fintech or medtech face a conundrum: They want to sign up as many new clients as possible, and create as few UX blocks and friction as possible.
At the same time, because of large risk exposure (legal, financial, reputational) they must ensure that they block as many if not all the cyber attacks on their application.
This tension between preserving UX and fighting off cyber fraud is also made more acute by the simple fact that cyberthreats evolve constantly, and that such companies often do not have the financial muscle of larger financial organizations.
Implementing an optimum PAM strategy is one of the most effective, and efficient way to achieve this best equilibrium. Implementing a sound mix of network protection and user type, AI-led behavioral biometrics protection can provide a sound, safe, enjoyable UX to users while keeping out bad agents.
PAM helps protect against breaches by managing and monitoring privileged accounts and access
The great thing about AI-led behavioral biometrics cybersecurity protocols, is that they are extremely effective at monitoring account usage, and identifying potential session hijackings for example.
They work in the background unseen by the user, monitoring account usage data (keystroke speed, mouse movements, IP log in time, etc.) in real-time.
As such, AI-led behavioral biometrics solutions are ideal to support a best in class PAM policy.
Their continuous monitoring and early mitigation in case of suspected fraud allow for effective protection, cost and financial damage limitation, as well as data protection.
If a bad agent triggers a high security threshold based on their usage of a valid account hijacked (say different IP, device, country, keystroke, mouse movements) the AI cybersecurity app can typically freeze their account before they can even perform a fraudulent transaction.
Implementing PAM Solutions:
- Identifying key systems that require privileged access,
- Identifying in detail every access / user / governance level on the platform
- Identifying key governance touch points (e.g. large transaction), system vulnerabilities (e.g. plugin updates or new account opening fraud), known issues, key transactions needing higher security, key user profiles requirement privileged access
- Conforming from the start, to existing relevant data protection standards and regulation (GDPR, etc.) Typically, cyber security suppliers already ensure their product is compliant but always an important step.
- Defining access protocols,
- Performing regular audits.
Emerging Trends and Technologies:
- Unique usage patterns we can derive from behavioral biometrics can establish an extremely accurate “usage profile” of each user on their account. Having that kind of fabulously specific “key” to compare another user’s usage patterns with, is a dream come true for PAM. It is virtually impossible to spoof by a bad agent who will always have their own keystroke speed, IP, device, country, etc. In short, it is an extremely effective tool to ensure that the user currently in the account is the valid user. A tool hard to overestimate for PAM policies.
Impact of cloud computing on PAM practices
- Scalability and elasticity: Dynamic provisioning and de-provisioning of privileged access in a Cloud environment is possible, with automation over multi-tenancy environments. AI-led (real time) risk management of fraudulent accounts, by applying different risk thresholds and authentication requests, is also easier to scale and implement on Cloud.
- Centralized management of privileged accounts: Modern Cloud environments typically unify and centralize previously disparate sources of data (on prem or from fragmented bespoke Cloud solutions)
- Integration with Cloud-native features: An effective, holistic cybersecurity policy addresses both of the network from physical/code attacks (DDoS, XSS, SQL injections, etc.) as well as the protection of the application, from account type frauds such as man-in-the-middle, data theft, session hijacking etc.
- Cloud native features such as Identity and Access Management (IAM) provide a sound layer of network protection, over which PAM protocols can be easily added. Coupled to MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication) or JIT (Just in Time) access, they can easily provide a solid foundational layer of protection to network attacks and exploits.
- Compliance and auditing: Similarly, the Cloud revolution already had to comply with various regulatory standards that relate to privileged access management. They provide a sound data and monitoring, log recording layer, that makes PAM policies more easily compliant.
Challenges and Solutions:
- Policy enforcement
- UX and User convenience.
- Possible solutions:
- Just-in-time access
- Principle of least privilege
- AI-led behavioral biometrics application protection “extra layer”.
Conclusion:
A poor PAM policy regularly blocks too many valid users from accessing their valid credentials, whilst letting in too many numerous bad agents who will easily acquire admin type credentials to wreak chaos across your operations and user base.
A poor PAM policy also interrupts too much of the UX for your valid clients and users.
A good PAM policy offers continuous account monitoring so as to bring a more effective mitigation, without interrupting normal behavior.
Identity theft is not just a financial risk, or reputational risk, it is also a growing psychological risk. Victims who had their personal data stolen and impersonated by a “synthetic person” report catastrophic mental health trauma, intense feelings of powerlessness.
Occasionally some experience irrecoverable damage, which will weigh existentially on their sense of wellbeing for years. Some on rare occasions report a rise in paranoia-like fear of online services and transactions, a cruel aftermath for people already hit by fraud, and considering the never-ending migration of our lives online.
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