Blog: What Is the Concept of Least Privilege Access?

Organizations around the globe are undergoing digital transformation and adopting hybrid work models to automate processes, improve efficiency, and minimize expenses. With all the benefits digital transformation brings, it also leaves businesses vulnerable to cyber attacks if they fail to leverage modern security solutions.

Legacy security solutions like virtual private networks (VPNs) aren’t enough to protect remote employees and cloud-based applications. Instead, business leaders are turning to zero trust network access (ZTNA) to defend against sophisticated threat vectors, such as malware, ransomware, and other cyber attacks.

If you’re familiar with zero trust security, you might have come across the concept of least privilege access too. While these terms are often used interchangeably, there are significant differences. In this blog, we’ll dive deeper into least privilege access to help you understand how it fits into the ZTNA ecosystem.

What Is Least Privilege Access?

Least privilege access works on the principle of restricting users’ access to applications, data, networks, and systems. In other words, it ensures every user only has access to the resources they need to perform their job, giving IT managers the power to decide which users can access and use what resources.

Implementing least privilege access includes conducting privilege audits, performing privilege segregation, and granting just-in-time privileges to higher-level accounts so they can complete certain tasks.

Benefits of Least Privilege Access

The principle of least privilege access protects an organization’s data and systems by minimizing the attack surface and preventing unauthorized access. This means that if a user account is compromised, hackers can only access limited resources.

It also helps maintain business continuity in the event of a cyber attack. With least privilege access, isolating infected applications and systems without disrupting other areas of the network is easy. That, in turn, improves employee productivity and curbs the extent of damage caused by the breach.

Least Privilege Access and ZTNA: Understanding the Connection

ZTNA works on the principle of “never trust, always verify,” authenticating, verifying, and validating a user’s identity every time they request access. It uses the concept of least privilege access to control what a user can access once they’re authorized. While ZTNA focuses on eliminating threats, least privilege access minimizes damage during a cyber attack. 

Interested in learning more about ZTNA? Download our free ebook below.

Safous: Your Partner in Advanced Network Security

Zero trust security works on the principle of “default deny” to protect your hybrid workforce from threats. Implementing least privilege access helps you reap the benefits of ZTNA by controlling users’ access to your organization’s resources, reducing your network’s attack surface, and identifying compromised resources during a breach.

Are you ready to harness the benefits of ZTNA for your business? Safous’ advanced ZTNA solution ensures 24/7 protection from cyber attacks. Request a demo today to see Safous ZTNA in action.