Best Practices in PAM: From Privileged Account Management to Privileged Identity Governance

Privileged accounts are a highly attractive target for cyberattacks due to the value and scope of the resources or activities to which they have access. According to a 2024 report by Verizon, approximately 40% of data breaches are linked to privileged accounts; not only that, but these security breaches also entail higher financial costs.

Protecting privileged accounts is no longer enough. In an increasingly complex environment, the issue is not just who has access, but everything that access entails and how it is managed over time. Therefore, a strategy focused solely on these access points is insufficient.

For a Privileged Access Management (PAM) strategy to be both effective and viable, it must be able to implement solutions capable of automating the governance of privileged identities and providing total control over all access, regardless of type.

That is the advantage of Soffid IAM: Identity and Access Management (IAM) is the result of the convergence of various tools, such as PAM, IGA y AM into a comprehensive solution, which enables and even optimizes the implementation of PAM best practices.

What Challenges Does Privileged Access Management (PAM) Face?

Among the challenges that an effective PAM strategy must address are:

• Who they are?

To begin with, it is necessary to identify and define all privileged access points a task that is complicated by the proliferation of cloud and hybrid environments. Determining what each identity needs, for what purpose, and for how long is one of the main challenges of PAM.

• Credential theft

Phishing and social engineering attacks are becoming increasingly common and sophisticated, and they often target identities with privileged access, those who hold the master key with which they could cause us the most harm.

• Third parties matter too
  There are many external parties that require temporary access to an organization’s most sensitive assets: from IT service providers to auditors or independent consultants. Often, these access permissions are not reviewed or revoked in a timely manner, leading to cumulative risks.

This “oversight” is no small matter: according to a study by The Ponemon Institute, 61% of companies have experienced issues related to third-party access.

• Internal threats

Equally important are security breaches that occur within the organization’s own digital ecosystem. Protection systems that simply erect a barrier to prevent access are completely ineffective against this type of threat. 

• Privilege abuse

The principle of least privilege cannot remain merely a good intention. Preventing the accumulation of permissions or granting more privileges than strictly necessary is a complex task that must be constantly reviewed; failing to carry it out efficiently poses one of the greatest IAM cyber threats.

Given all these challenges, which arise in various environments, the big question is: How do we tackle them? What should a mature organization be doing to truly manage its privileged accounts?

 What are the best practices for PAM?

SOFFID PAM is designed to strengthen the protection of an organization’s critical accounts by monitoring and auditing all privileged access.

It seamlessly integrates with other solutions on a single IAM platform. Thus, PAM contributes to and benefits from the capabilities of other tools, particularly those related to identity governance (IGA) and identity threat detection and response (ITDR).

A comprehensive solution capable of unifying identity management policies and monitoring all access in real time is the optimal way to implement PAM best practices.

Least privilege = access only to what is strictly necessary

Privileges are neither permanent nor immutable. The least privilege policy involves granting only the necessary access, no more, no less (just-enough-administration)—and only for as long as needed (just-in-time).

This means that users do not retain privileges indefinitely, but rather receive them solely to perform a specific task, and they are automatically revoked once the task is completed. This significantly reduces the attack surface and the risk associated with the misuse of privileged credentials.

This narrows the scope for potential attacks, as it restricts the avenues for unwanted access.

Automation and Continuous Re-validation, Always Up to Date

Identity governance is fundamental to any IAM strategy. Defining digital identities and modifying or revoking permissions based on circumstances are complex tasks that SOFFI IGA simplifies through the automation of re-certification processes.

The goal is to constantly review the assignment of credentials, including those for privileged accounts, to prevent privilege abuse. Automating these revalidation processes enhances the efficiency of IAM systems and minimizes errors and risks.

Real-time monitoring with comprehensive logging

The activity of identities associated with privileged accounts is constantly monitored, so that sessions are supervised and approved in real time, in addition to being logged. 

As soon as any type of risk or threat is detected, automatic protective responses are triggered, which also enable the unauthorized access attempt to be quickly identified and flagged.

Furthermore, this log of privileged account activity can be compiled into detailed reports that demonstrate the effectiveness of the security measures implemented, which are required by various regulations.

Enhanced Protection with Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) and Adaptive Authentication

In privileged account management, “secure passwords” do not live up to their name. To prevent phishing or other attacks involving credential theft, it is necessary to implement mechanisms that offer greater protection, such as MFA.

User Experience

All these identity management, access monitoring, and risk detection activities must not place a burden on the user, especially when it comes to privileged accounts that perform critical functions within a company.

The Soffid solution facilitates identity and access management with a flexible and scalable approach based on simplifying complex processes, processes that must not be allowed to interfere with an organization’s operational capacity.

SOFFID PAM, along with the rest of the IAM solutions, integrates into different environments and is compatible with legacy systems. Accounts are managed from a single management dashboard, which provides access to all available tools. No two organizations are alike, so there can be no one-size-fits-all IAM solution.

At Soffid IAM, we tailor each solution to the specific needs of every organization.

If you’d like to explore how to secure and manage your privileged access without adding complexity, we can analyze your situation for free and help you define the best approach.