In the spirit of keeping blog posts informative, short and fun, this one takes a cue from David Letterman in format. So without further fanfare or wasted space... the Top 10 Reasons to Implement Least Privilege on Linux Servers are:
#10 - Sam, the CSO can now sleep nights knowing that excess privileges will no longer be responsible for failing a SOX, HIPAA, PCI, DSS, GLBA or FDCC and FISMA audit (even though he isn't required to even deal with the last two).
#9 - Andy the Auditor can get a full report of who has what entitlements instantly to satisfy compliance successfully, instead of taking weeks of manual effort
#8 - Ted in Tech Support won't be able to reset file and directory permissions on any Linux server he has admin rights to so liberally that anyone with a login can access confidential data just because it makes his job easier
#7 - Sid in Development won't be able to download Apache applications or any otherunauthorized open source "tools" potentially injecting malware into our corporate network
#6 - Fiona and Felix our new Linux administrators won't make one, or more, of the 10 Mistakes New Linux Administrators Make
#5 - Vito, the ever-industrious programmer will no longer be able to code suid root binaries into his programs allowing programmatic access beyond what is allowed by corporate policy or regulatory requirements
#4 - Alice in IT will no longer be responsible for DNS misconfiguration errors as her role won't facilitate this level of admin privilege
#3 - Fred in IT won't be able to install a Trojan on the mission critical server, bringing it down for 4 hours and costing the company over $1M in lost transactions, because he was passed over for a big promotion
#2 - Sarah, the CIO will no longer have to hide Linux root credentials in a sealed envelope in her office safe and deal with a manual check in/check out process
#1 - Tony, the Palo Alto Linux administrator will no longer be able to wear that ratty old T-shirt with the slogan "Bow before me, for I am root" any longer
Scott Lang, Sr. Director, Product Marketing at BeyondTrust
Scott Lang has nearly 20 years of experience in technology product marketing, currently guiding the product marketing strategy for BeyondTrust’s privileged account management solutions and vulnerability management solutions. Prior to joining BeyondTrust, Scott was director of security solution marketing at Dell, formerly Quest Software, where he was responsible for global security campaigns, product marketing for identity and access management and Windows server management.