Starburst, a pioneering software company based in Boston, offers a cutting-edge data lakehouse platform, integrating the best features of data lakes, data warehouses, and data virtualization. Their journey with Entitle showcases a transformative approach to managing cloud access.
Traditionally, a subset of Starburst's production engineers had elevated roles within their AWS accounts which posed security risks and inefficiencies. The need was clear: to facilitate access to production environments only when necessary, without hindering operational speed.
Starburst adopted a radical shift to a read-only baseline model. Engineers requesting permissions to make changes in the production environment would go through Entitle. Crucially, for on-call engineers, automatic provisioning was set up, recognizing the urgency and unpredictable nature of incident handling.
The implementation of Entitle led to a groundbreaking outcome: zero engineers with baseline admin access in production. Starburst successfully transitioned from perpetual access to a just-in-time (JIT) model, enhancing security without compromising efficiency.
Automated on-call escalation for incident handling
Zero standing admin privileges in production
Significant reduction in manual work
"We initially considered building an in-house solution, but Entitle's affordability, ease of use, and comprehensive feature set made it the obvious choice. It not only saved us on additional staffing but also seamlessly integrated into our existing systems."
—Shane Dizer, Security Engineering Manager, Starburst
Entitle not only provided a robust solution for Starburst's unique challenges but also propelled them towards a more secure, efficient, and manageable cloud environment. This case study exemplifies how innovation in access management can fundamentally change how companies operate in the cloud.