5 Best Practices of Privileged User Security Awareness

Enterprise privileged accounts have become a primary target as the attack surface expands. Third-party risks, insider threats and external cyber-attacks continue to loom over privileged account security.

Elevated accounts are a security risk for the level of access they grant to users. When a threat actor succeeds in intruding into a privileged account, they can access business-critical data and even control networks.

Addressing privileged account challenges and reducing the attack surface needs a multi-step security strategy. One of the essential steps in the security strategy is incorporating privileged user security awareness.

Privileged users play a pivotal role in organisational operations. They hold elevated access rights that enable them to manage, configure, and control vital IT infrastructure. This level of access empowers them to make drastic changes and access data that regular users cannot.

However, with great power comes great responsibility, and the onus is on enterprises to maintain the highest security awareness standards regarding privileged accounts.

In this article, we delve into the significance of enterprise privileged accounts, the purpose of their security, how security awareness bodes well for all, and present five best practices for enhancing security awareness.

What is the Purpose of Privileged User Access Security?  

Privileged account security and user awareness safeguard an organisation’s assets from cyber-attacks, protecting data integrity, availability and confidentiality.

A compromise in the security of privileged accounts can have far-reaching consequences, including unauthorised access to sensitive data, system manipulation, financial loss, and potential damage to an organisation’s reputation, as evident in many recent breaches. Here’s a recent,

Data Breach that Started from Exploiting Privileged Credentials

We’re talking about the August 2022 breach at Twilio.

Twilio, a leading cloud communications platform provider, is a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities associated with phishing attacks and compromised privileged credentials.

What happened?

Phishing SMS campaign targeting Twilio employees tricked them into revealing their login credentials. From there, threat actors gained access to internal systems and data, including:

Customer data (names, phone numbers, email addresses)

API keys and tokens

Potential access to SMS authentication codes

As a result, Twilio’s services were potentially disrupted, which caused massive reputational damage to the company. The most important lesson from the Twilio breach was that security awareness is crucial.

How Will Security Awareness Training for Privileged Users be Beneficial?

Security awareness training for Privileged Users is crucial for three reasons:

Protection of Access Rights

Security awareness training ensures that the users understand the importance of safeguarding their access rights and take proactive measures to protect them.

Relevance in a Dynamic Landscape

Security awareness training informs privileged users about the latest threats, attack vectors, and best practices, allowing them to adapt and respond effectively to emerging risks.

And…

Maintaining Organisational Integrity

Security awareness training contributes to maintaining the integrity of the organisation. By ensuring that privileged users are aware of security best practices and potential risks, the organisation can build a strong defence against cyber threats, protecting its reputation and the trust of its stakeholders.

…which brings us to

Privileged User Security Awareness: 5 Best Practices to Follow

1. Promoting the Principle of Least Privilege

Ensuring that privileged users only have the minimum level of access necessary to perform their job functions.

Regularly reviewing and updating access permissions based on job roles and responsibilities.

Limiting the use of shared accounts and avoiding giving broad, unnecessary access to reduce the risk of unauthorised activities.

2. Enforcing Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Requiring privileged users to authenticate using multiple factors, such as passwords, biometrics, or smart cards.

Adding an additional layer of security makes it more challenging for attackers to gain unauthorised access even if they manage to obtain login credentials.

3. Secure Password Management for Privileged Users

Encouraging or enforcing the use of strong, complex passwords for privileged accounts.

Implementing a password management solution to securely store and manage passwords.

Regularly updating passwords and avoiding reuse across different accounts.

4. Real-Time User Activity Monitoring and Event Logging

Implementing real-time monitoring tools to track privileged user activities.

Setting up alerts for suspicious or unusual behaviour, such as multiple login attempts, access to sensitive data, or changes in system configurations.

Monitoring both successful and unsuccessful login attempts to identify potential security threats.

5. Regular Auditing for Better Compliance

Conducting regular audits of privileged user accounts and activities.

Reviewing access logs, permissions, and usage patterns to identify anomalies or potential security risks.

Ensuring compliance with security policies and regulations through periodic assessments.

Minimise Human Error and Secure Privileged Accounts with Sectona

Sectona Privileged Access Management (PAM) solution addresses enterprise security awareness concerns and challenges by aligning them with best practices. The PAM solution controls access permissions, delegates privileged access, authenticates users, secures credentials, and governs privileges.

Sectona PAM automates most mundane privileged access security tasks, such as password management, access provisioning, and de-provisioning. This reduces human error and saves time and effort for IT teams, allowing them to focus on other critical tasks that require human intervention.

Having Sectona’s robust PAM solution ensures that user privileges are not misused and that best practices for security awareness are followed.