Three tips for managing admin access to your cloud-hosted servers

As companies’ workloads increasingly move to the cloud, new security concerns arise. Chief among these is making sure your company is prepared to manage access to the sensitive data that resides in the cloud.

Traditional privileged access management solutions (PAM) are expensive, and they’re too slow for onboarding and offboarding in multi-cloud environments. Instead, companies need a lean, scalable access management solution that can keep up with the demands of cloud.

This article will introduce the importance of admin access management in cloud environments, and outline three core tips for planning admin access to your cloud-hosted servers.

Overview of Cloud Admin Access Management

What is Admin Access Management?

Admin access management involves controlling and monitoring the rights and privileges of users who have administrative access to IT systems. This function is critical to safeguarding sensitive information and maintaining system integrity. It ensures that only authorized personnel have elevated access to perform necessary tasks, while also tracking their actions to prevent and detect any potential misuse of privileges.

Cloud vs. Traditional On-premises Access Management Challenges

Cloud environments differ from traditional on-premises setups in several ways, presenting unique challenges for access management. The decentralized nature of cloud services requires more dynamic and flexible access control mechanisms.

Unlike on-premises infrastructures, where control is more centralized, the cloud's scalability and remote accessibility necessitate a different approach to ensure security without hindering productivity.

Importance of Managing Admin Access in Cloud Environments

Enhanced Security

Robust admin access management in cloud environments is essential to protect against unauthorized access and potential breaches. It helps in defining a clear boundary of responsibilities and privileges, which is crucial in minimizing the attack surface and protecting against internal and external threats.

Compliance and Regulatory Requirements

Many industries are governed by stringent regulatory standards that mandate strict access controls and audit capabilities. Managing admin access effectively helps organizations meet these compliance requirements by providing a transparent and traceable method of monitoring administrative activities.

Operational Efficiency

Efficient admin access management streamlines processes and reduces the administrative overhead associated with manual interventions. By automating access rights and privileges, organizations can ensure a swift response to changing needs without compromising on security.

Three Tips for Secure Cloud Admin Access Management

1. Ensuring Scalable Access Management

Traditional PAM aren’t designed to scale at the speed of business, especially when that business is relying on cloud-based resources. They can take months to implement, and there are few things more frustrating for developers than having to wait for access to resources they need. Often, cloud instances are enrolled and decommissioned every day.

A scalable access management solution that’s able to automatically on- and off-board hosts, plus add instances as your needs grow, will help keep your administrators and your developers happy. 

2. Using Robust PAM Solutions for Multi-Cloud Environments

AWS, Google Cloud, Azure and OpenStack all have their own access management consoles. When your organization is operating in a multi-cloud environment, dealing with multiple separate access consoles can quickly become challenging. Using multiple systems to access a resource would be frustrating for your developers. And your IT managers would need to handle multiple registries with duplicate information.

PrivX, the lean agile privileged access management solution for multi-cloud environments, is able to control and consolidate access to workloads whether they’re in AWS, GCP or Azure cloud environments, or all three, as well as private cloud and on-premise environments. It’s all accessible from a single user interface, providing visibility into the whole environment and making it easy to manage.

Better yet, you can set it and forget it. PrivX stays in sync and automatically discovers new hosts, along with any changes in your host environments, freeing up time and resources for your teams to work on what they do best.

3. Synchronizing Cloud Access with IAM Systems

Your team is dynamic: At any given moment, you may be dealing with employees joining, employees departing, temp workers and third-party contractors. When the roles of your team members change, access needs change, too. That’s why you need an access management solution that can interface with your identity management system.

Automation is your friend here. A solution that can automatically pull user identities from your IAM allows you to handle changes in access needs instantly, eliminating the delays that irk developers. Automatic integration of your lean PAM with your IAM helps save time and effort, linking the HR process with the IT process to expedite access.

PrivX™: Lean PAM for Hybrid and Multi-Cloud Environments

Moving your workload to the cloud requires lots of planning around security and access issues. By following these three tips, organizations can get a head start on the kinds of issues that create security risks and frustrate developers.

Want to learn more about how lean PAM works? Click here!

PS. Alternatively, you can sign up for the PrivX test drive – it doesn't cost you anything and it’s the full product in a browser!

FAQ

What are the key challenges in setting up privileged access management (PAM) for cloud environments compared to traditional on-premises systems?

Setting up PAM in cloud environments is challenging due to the dynamic nature of internet-connected environments, which requires continuous provision and de-provision of privileged user accounts.

Unlike traditional Active Directory setups, cloud PAM must handle multiple isolated environments and complex authorization requirements.

Additionally, privileged accounts in cloud systems are more vulnerable to malware and hackers, necessitating robust privilege management practices.

How does using a robust PAM solution help manage privileged accounts and mitigate privilege risks in a multi-cloud environment?

A robust PAM solution consolidates the management of privileged accounts across multi-cloud environments, providing a single portal for unified visibility and control. This approach ensures least privilege access, reducing the risk of hackers exploiting privileged credentials. It also streamlines the management of administrative accounts and mim workflows, enhancing security and compliance with regulations.

What are some examples of privilege threat vectors that PAM solutions can help solve in cloud-hosted servers?

PAM solutions address several privilege threat vectors, including unauthorized access by privileged users, malware attacks targeting privileged credentials, and breaches resulting from mismanaged administrative accounts. By enforcing least privilege and providing isolated environments like bastion forests, PAM reduces the risk of hackers compromising user accounts and sensitive applications.

How can synchronizing privileged user access with Identity and Access Management (IAM) systems improve workflows and reduce privilege risks?

Synchronizing PAM with IAM systems ensures dynamic and automated management of privileged user accounts, aligning with best practices for authorization and least privilege. This integration streamlines mim workflows, reducing the risk of privilege drift and ensuring timely de-provisioning of access. It also supports breach investigations and compliance with cyber insurance requirements.

What are the best monitoring options for tracking privileged access and detecting potential problems in cloud-hosted environments?

Effective monitoring options for privileged access in cloud-hosted environments include real-time tracking of privileged credentials usage, integration with breach investigations reports, and automated alerts for unusual activities. These tools help enterprise IT teams quickly identify and respond to privilege management issues, ensuring compliance with regulations and protecting against cyber threats.