NEW: Microsoft Vulnerabilities Report 2022 - Read the Findings of Our Annual Report Read Now

  • Partners
  • Support
  • Careers
  • English
    • Deutsch
    • français
    • español
    • 한국어
    • português
BeyondTrust
  • Products

    Privileged Password Management

    Discover, manage, audit, and monitor privileged accounts and credentials.

    • Password Safe
    • DevOps Secrets Safe
    • Privileged Access Discovery Application

    Endpoint Privilege Management

    Enforce least privilege across Windows, Mac, Linux, and Unix endpoints.

    • Windows and Mac
    • Unix and Linux
    • Active Directory Bridge

    Secure Remote Access

    Centrally manage remote access for service desks, vendors, and operators.

    • Remote Support
    • Privileged Remote Access
    • Privileged Access Discovery Application

    Cloud Security Management

    Automate the management of identities and assets across your multicloud footprint.

    • Cloud Privilege Broker

    BeyondInsight

    Experience the industry’s most innovative, comprehensive platform for privileged access management.

  • Solutions

    Use Cases

    • Cloud Security
    • Compliance
    • Cyber Insurance
    • Digital Transformation
    • Endpoint Security
    • Operational Technology
    • Ransomware
    • Service Desk Efficiency
    • Zero Trust

    Industry Applications

    • Financial Services
    • Government Agencies
    • Healthcare
    • Law Enforcement
    • Manufacturing
    • Schools & Universities

    Solutions

    The BeyondTrust Privileged Access Management portfolio is an integrated solution that provides visibility and control over all privileged accounts and users.

  • Resources

    Learn

    • Blog
    • Customer Stories
    • Competitor Comparisons
    • Datasheets
    • Videos
    • Glossary
    • Infographics
    • Podcast
    • Whitepapers

    Attend

    • Events
    • Go Beyond
    • Training
    • Webinars

    Support

    • Changelog
    • Professional Services
    • Technical Documentation

    Universal Privilege Management

    Our innovative Universal Privilege Management approach secures every user, asset, and session across your entire enterprise.

  • Company
    • About
    • Leadership
    • Core Values
    • Partners
    • Careers
  • Watch Demo
  • Contact Sales

If Privilege Management is Like a Road Trip, We’re Gonna Need a Smoother Road

June 19, 2018

  • Blog
  • Archive
  1. Home
  2. Blog
  3. If Privilege Management is Like a Road Trip, We’re Gonna Need a Smoother Road

Privilege Management

I'm from New England. And, in New England, summers means a lots of road trips to the beaches, the Berkshires, or a trip into Boston for a ballgame. During my last road trip, I started thinking of how for IT security teams, least privilege management is a lot like tending to long roads. On any road trip, there are three things: your passengers in a vehicle, a long road, and all of the scenery (and potential hazards) you spot and avoid along the way.

In this analogy, think of your end users as passengers in a vehicle, and your end users’ day to day tasks simply as driving a car down a long country road, heading from point A to point B. You have end users that on a daily basis simply need to get from here…to there: they need to run, update, and install apps; they may have configuration rights to programs, or in general, need the ability to do something that requires admin rights to do so. Rather than have to repeatedly grant them access EVERY…SINGLE…TIME, it’s easier to just give them these rights. In other words, the daily routine is part of their daily commute, and they need permission to drive it.

Security, on the other hand, is like a vehicle. As IT security, you’ve put your users in a nice, safe car with some high-tech features that you hope will ensure a smooth ride on this road. The problem is, there are new hazards popping up all the time.

So, what do IT security teams need in order to ensure a smooth daily operation and safe travels for our end users? We build bridges, we install more and more ‘latest and greatest’ technology, we put up netting to block falling rocks, and the list goes on and on. Essentially, we’re installing bigger tires, higher suspension, and a roll bar to make our users safer on their road.

But aren’t we just masking the real issue? Most problems occur when our users attempt to go ‘off-road’ or perform tasks outside of their day-to-day responsibilities. Most of the preventive measures we take to keep users safe are only relevant if those users have ‘off-road’ admin rights. It isn’t a bigger, badder truck we need, although I do love big trucks. Instead, we need a smoother road. After all, it’s much easier to monitor traffic on a nice paved straight-away then worrying about a bunch of users navigating the cliff side.

This is what we mean when we talk about the benefits of implementing least privilege, the concept of starting with a limited set of end-user permissions and rights and building up from there. I completely understand concerns around impacting productivity and making sure users can do their job. This is the key to making sure your organization is both protected and productive. Getting from nothing to functional is where BeyondTrust can help.

BeyondTrust PowerBroker for Windows and PowerBroker Mac are endpoint least privilege solutions that can track what users do, how they behave and have a policy ready to go before you move to this security model. This tracking continues forever more so you can quickly respond to new requests. With BeyondTrust endpoint privilege management solutions, you can:

  • Grant privileges to applications and tasks – not users – without providing administrator credentials
  • Leverage vulnerability data from Retina and other solutions for a complete picture of privileged application and asset security
  • Block list hacking tools, block list approved applications, and grey list applications based on rules to keep systems safe
  • Lockdown enterprise credentials, including shared accounts, user accounts, and service accounts
  • Analyze privileged password, user, and account behavior, and assign event threat levels based on the user, asset, and application launching

In IT security and in life, sometimes it’s ok to let people take an off-ramp. With BeyondTrust solutions, you get the flexibility to customize rules without compromising access. We’re here to help you map the correct roads for a smooth ride! To learn more about how our solutions can help, download our latest white paper, “The CISO’s Guide to Managing Risk for Privileged Access & Credentials in Windows Environments.”

Photograph of Jason Silva

Jason Silva, Sr. Solutions Engineer, BeyondTrust

Jason Silva brings over 25 years of solutions and management experience to the industry. Currently serving as Senior Solutions Engineer for BeyondTrusts' Universal Privilege Management Platform, he uses this knowledge to help customers realize the value of our solutions throughout the product lifecycle. Earlier in his career, he found success as a software developer in a global consulting company and spent over four years managing IT and Regulatory Compliance in the banking industry.

Specialties: Microsoft Active Directory, Microsoft Group Policy, Pre and Post Sales Training, Sales Engineering, Enterprise Security Tools, Privileged Access Management

Stay Up To Date

Get the latest news, ideas, and tactics from BeyondTrust. You may unsubscribe at any time.

I agree to receive product related communications from BeyondTrust as detailed in the Privacy Policy, and I may manage my preferences or withdraw my consent at any time.

You May Also Be Interested In:

Whitepapers

IDSA Report: 2022 Trends in Securing Digital Identities

Whitepapers

Microsoft Vulnerabilities Report 2022

Whitepapers

Mapping BeyondTrust Capabilities to NIST Zero Trust (SP 800-207)

Keep up with BeyondTrust

I agree to receive product related communications from BeyondTrust as detailed in the Privacy Policy, and I may manage my preferences or withdraw my consent at any time.

Customer Support
Contact Sales

Products

  • Endpoint Privilege Management
  • Password Management
  • Privileged Remote Access
  • DevOps Secrets Safe
  • Remote Support
  • Cloud Privilege Broker

Resources

  • Blog
  • Case Studies
  • Competitor Comparisons
  • Datasheets
  • Glossary
  • Infographics
  • Podcast
  • Videos
  • Webinars
  • Whitepapers

About

  • Company
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Events
  • Leadership Team
  • Partner Program
  • Press
BeyondTrust Logo
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Privacy
  • Security
  • Manage Cookies
  • WEEE Compliance

Copyright © 1999 — 2022 BeyondTrust Corporation. All rights reserved. Other trademarks identified on this page are owned by their respective owners. BeyondTrust Corporation is not a chartered bank or trust company, or depository institution. It is not authorized to accept deposits or trust accounts and is not licensed or regulated by any state or federal banking authority.