Privileged access management (PAM) is a vital part of any security solution. It's the process of protecting sensitive data from unauthorized users, and it can help organizations mitigate risk and prevent data breaches. But what do you need to know when choosing a product? Here are some tips:
Security governance
Privileged accounts are the backbone of privileged access management. Without them, you’re not managing privilege issues—you’re just managing users.
Privileged Access Management (PAM) is about identity management: how does your organization define what qualifies as a privileged account? How do you manage those accounts effectively? The answer to these questions depends on who in your organization will be able to access what level of data (and under what circumstances). You should consider the following factors when determining how many privileged accounts are needed:
Monitoring and analytics
Monitoring and analytics are the most important features of a privileged access management solution. Monitor your users' activities, detect anomalies in the way they use their privileged accounts, and identify any potential security threats before they become an issue.
A good platform should have monitoring built right into it, so that you can see what's happening on your network with ease. It should also be easy to use—you shouldn't have to spend hours training employees on how to log into their accounts or who has which privilege level before being able to monitor them using this tool.
Role-based access control
Role-based access control (RBAC) is a great way to manage privileged access. RBAC helps with both security and accountability, which are important aspects of privileged access management.
Role-based access can be used to limit the data that users have access to, which helps with security governance and accountability. For example, if you have a role that contains sensitive information like marketing budgets or sales projections, then only people who have this role will have read-only access to it in their platform's directory structure. This way if an employee leaves your company without giving notice before their shift ends at midnight on Friday night, they won't be able get into any files with sensitive information stored within them!
Permission-based access control
Permission-based access control is one of the most common types of privilege management systems. The system allows users to be granted access to resources based on their role, rather than on individual user accounts or devices.
Encryption support
Encryption is one of the most important aspects of any privileged access management solution. It can be used to protect all data in transit and at rest, including passwords, keys and certificates. The encryption must be strong enough to protect your organization from those who might want to steal it or access it for nefarious purposes. If you don't have an encryption solution in place yet then it's time to get started!
You also need to consider how much information will be stored on each device—and where exactly that data should go once it has been encrypted (e.g., a hardware device).
Authentication, authorization and accounting (AAA)
Authentication, authorization and accounting (AAA) is a framework for managing user access to network resources. AAA is often used in conjunction with other security mechanisms such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems.
The goal of AAA is to ensure that only authorized users can access a network resource while also tracking their activities on the network. This helps prevent unauthorized access by monitoring any activity by users who have been given privileged access, such as system administrators or privileged accounts such as those belonging to executives at companies where you work.
Flexibility in policy enforcement and role assignment
Role-based access control (RBAC) is an effective way to manage privileged access. It allows you to delegate permissions based on the user’s role, rather than assigning them all at once. In this model, you can create groups of users and assign them various roles that they must have in order to access certain resources. This means that if one group has been granted a certain level of access but is no longer needed for it, your organization can delete their permissions from the system without affecting other groups who continue using those same services.
A privileged access management solution helps with identity management
A privileged access management solution helps with identity management. The most important aspect of managing privileged accounts is knowing who has what access. This can be done by ensuring that each user has his or her own unique ID and password, which allows for easy identification in case there are issues with the actual account (e.g., lost or stolen).
Another key aspect of privileged access management is knowing who has access to what data and systems within your organization's network. An effective strategy should include a comprehensive list of all systems included in an organization’s network, as well as applications used by employees on those systems. Access controls should also be included in this list; this will allow IT staff members (and other interested parties) access only when needed via knowledge-based authentication methods such as smart cards or biometrics scanners so they don't overwhelm users while they're trying desperately not get caught out!
Conclusion
When choosing a privileged access management (PAM) solution, it's important to consider the needs of your organization. Make sure the product you choose is scalable and can meet the demands of your business. It's also important to consider the features of the product and how they can benefit your organization.
