The key purpose of PASM is to manage privileged accounts and control their sessions<\/a>. Specifically, this approach involves secure vaulting of privileged credentials and controlling access for human users, services, and applications.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n PASM solutions enable users to initiate sessions via credential injection (without disclosing credentials to users) and record privileged user activity. They also simplify the management of critical credentials by automating scheduled or event-triggered password rotation. These functions are considered the core privileged access management (PAM) features<\/a> that help organizations reduce password-related risks and maintain compliance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Privileged account and session management solutions help organizations secure, control, and monitor the use of privileged accounts that have access to critical infrastructure and confidential data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s how PASM works in practice:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\t\t Step 1. User access request<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t A user initiates a session that requires elevated access privileges to perform administrative tasks or access sensitive systems.<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Step 2. Request evaluation<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Based on predefined policies, the PASM software approves, denies, or routes the request for manual approval.<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Step 3. Vault-based credential management<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Once access is granted, the system retrieves credentials from a secure vault. These credentials are never directly revealed to the user; instead, they are automatically injected into the session.<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Step 4. Session monitoring and recording<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Each privileged session is monitored in real time and recorded for later review. This may include screen recordings, keystrokes, application usage, and more.<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n By combining vaulting, approval workflows, and live monitoring, PASM solutions serve two complementary functions: managing privileged accounts and managing privileged sessions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n PASM\u2019s first function is privileged account management<\/strong>. Its aim is to manage accounts with elevated permissions that allow access to critical data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An organization usually has three types of privileged accounts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n These accounts are among the biggest risk factors within a corporate network. They’re vulnerable to both outsider attacks and insider threats and therefore need to be tightly managed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Privileged account management includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The second element of PASM is privileged session management<\/a> (PSM)<\/strong>, which focuses on sessions initiated by privileged accounts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n PSM can help you identify unauthorized or anomalous actions and block them until you can determine whether the suspicious activity is legitimate. Additionally, privileged session management provides an unimpeachable audit trail that proves helpful during incident investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With PASM allowing you to manage both privileged sessions and accounts, you can address a large set of cybersecurity risks and boost the level of protection for your company\u2019s critical systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Privileged accounts, especially those of administrators, are prime targets for attackers who want to gain access to an organization\u2019s critical data. Without proper management of privileged accounts, the possibility of unauthorized administrators’ actions going undetected is much higher. There are several reasons why your company should consider deploying privileged account and session management tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s now examine the core features of PASM and go over some key steps security teams can take to incorporate PASM into their organization’s data protection measures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When choosing a PASM solution, look for the following features to ensure proper protection and management of your organization\u2019s privileged accounts and sessions: <\/p>\n\n\n\n\t\t Key features of PASM solutions<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t\t Privileged account discovery<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Privileged account management<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Password management<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Identity management<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Privileged session management<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Auditing and reporting<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n This feature helps you detect all unmanaged accounts with elevated permissions across your IT environment. After identifying these accounts, you can choose to onboard or delete them, thus addressing the threats associated with unnecessary or risky privileged accounts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Privileged account and session management tools help you not only discover but also create and configure admin-level accounts across your IT environment. Look for solutions that allow you to modify privileged accounts as needed. Pay special attention to solutions that enable you to approve access requests to highly critical endpoints or grant temporary access to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Choose PASM systems that offer a secure vault for storing credentials. Another important feature to look for is automatic password rotation (e.g., weekly, monthly, or after each use). This reduces the risk of credential theft and supports zero trust principles<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Enforcing two-factor authentication<\/a> for all privileged actions significantly decreases the risk of unauthorized access. If your organization has shared accounts, look for solutions that also provide specific access control mechanisms for these accounts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n To fully protect against privilege misuse, you need complete visibility of all privileged session activity. A robust PASM solution should provide:<\/p>\n\n\n\n A PASM solution should have comprehensive reporting features that can provide detailed information on privileged accounts and their activities. These features enable you to cross-check incident response actions and analyze your cyber threat landscape over a definite period of time. PASM tools should provide detailed audit and video logs for both internal and external investigations, session analysis for researching suspicious events, and a report summarizing all activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Successfully adopting a PASM strategy involves more than just deploying dedicated tools \u2014 it’s about building a holistic approach to managing privileged identities, access, and sessions. Here are the key steps to follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t\t Implementing a PASM strategy<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 1. Assess and identify privileged accounts<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 2. Create a PASM policy <\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 3. Deploy a PASM solution<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 4. Implement the principle of least privilege<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 5. Review and revoke privileged access<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 6. Enforce strong authentication and access controls<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 7. Monitor and audit privileged sessions<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 8. Set alerts for risky privileged activity<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 9. Raise cybersecurity awareness among employees<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t 10. Continuously enhance your PASM strategy<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\t\t\t \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n The first step to a successful PASM strategy is understanding what privileges exist in your IT environment. Start by taking inventory of all privileged accounts<\/a>, including administrators, service accounts, and application accounts. Identify the systems, applications, and data they have access to. Map out user roles and access pathways, including remote or third-party connections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you understand your privileged landscape, establish a formal policy framework to govern how you grant, monitor, and revoke privileged access. This should include access request and approval procedures, session monitoring requirements, alerting thresholds, and audit expectations. Ensure these policies align with compliance standards such as NIST 800-53<\/a>, ISO 27001<\/a>, NIS2<\/a>, or PCI DSS<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Once your policies are clearly defined, the next step is selecting and deploying a PASM solution<\/a> that aligns with your organization\u2019s operational and security needs. Prioritize solutions that offer seamless integration with your existing infrastructure to ensure centralized visibility and incident response. Don\u2019t forget to consider ease of deployment, scalability, and support for hybrid environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Applying the principle of least privilege<\/a> ensures accounts can only access the data needed for their intended purposes. Avoid granting users standing access privileges. Instead, implement temporary, session-based elevation or just-in-time PAM<\/a> approaches. By reducing the level and duration of access, you can significantly minimize your attack surface and the potential for privilege misuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Access rights must be reviewed on a set schedule to ensure they remain appropriate. Schedule regular user access reviews<\/a> or conduct them on demand when users change roles. Be sure to delete unused or orphaned accounts as soon as they are no longer needed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Use multi-factor authentication (MFA)<\/a> for all privileged sessions. Wherever possible, integrate single sign-on (SSO) to streamline access while maintaining control. Additionally, we recommend setting manual administrator approvals for high-risk activities, such as accessing sensitive systems and data. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Record every privileged account session<\/a> by capturing video or screenshots of privileged user sessions and related metadata. This level of visibility allows security teams to reconstruct the full context of any action taken during a privileged session. It also helps during forensic investigations and regulatory audits. In addition to recording, logs should be centralized and stored securely to prevent tampering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Configure your PASM solution to trigger alerts<\/a> for high-risk activity, such as login attempts from unusual IP addresses, accessing sensitive systems outside business hours, and changes to privileged user roles or permissions. Link alerts to incident response actions for quick remediation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Regularly educate your employees about cybersecurity best practices and early signs of insider threats<\/a>. Provide in-depth training for IT admins, helpdesk staff, and developers on managing and using privileged access accounts. Make sure they understand the security implications and are aware that sessions are monitored. Culture plays a big role in reducing insider risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Always strive to improve your PASM strategy. Leverage user activity reports<\/a> to identify cybersecurity gaps, evaluate performance, and respond to evolving threats. Track metrics like the frequency of policy violations and the number of privilege-related incidents. Use these insights to fine-tune your policies, cybersecurity measures, and training initiatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Syteca is a flexible and scalable platform that simplifies PASM implementation by combining robust privileged access controls with powerful session monitoring capabilities. Here are the key features you get with Syteca:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t\t <\/a>Privileged account discovery<\/a><\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t Identify unmanaged and orphaned accounts across your network, ensuring no privileged accounts go unnoticed.<\/p>\n\n \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n\t\t![\"Privileged](\"https:\/\/syteca_site_uploads.storage.googleapis.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/24232310\/1-Privileged-Account-and-Session-Management-PASM-1.svg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nHow privileged account and session management works<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Privileged](\"https:\/\/syteca_site_uploads.storage.googleapis.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/24035215\/2-Privileged-Account-and-Session-Management-PASM.svg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nManaging privileged accounts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Managing privileged sessions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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4 main reasons to implement PASM<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Benefits](\"https:\/\/syteca_site_uploads.storage.googleapis.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/24035814\/3-Privileged-Account-and-Session-Management-PASM.svg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n
Key features of PASM solutions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.syteca.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/check-icon.svg\"){kind=icon}
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\nPrivileged account discovery<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Privileged account management<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Password management<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Identity management<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Privileged session management<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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<\/li>\n\n\n\n
<\/li>\n\n\n\nAuditing and reporting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
How to successfully implement a PASM strategy in your organization<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
1. Assess and identify privileged accounts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2. Create a PASM policy <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
3. Deploy a PASM solution <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
4. Implement the principle of least privilege<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
5. Review and revoke privileged access<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
6. Enforce strong authentication and access controls<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
7. Monitor and audit privileged sessions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
8. Set alerts for risky privileged activity <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
9. Raise cybersecurity awareness among employees<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
10. Continuously enhance your PASM strategy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Implementing PASM with Syteca<\/h2>\n\n\n\n