Today, privileges are built into operating systems, file systems, applications, databases, hypervisors, cloud management platforms, DevOps tools, robotic automation processes, and more. Cybercriminals covet privileges/privileged access because it can expedite access to an organization’s most sensitive targets. With privileged credentials and access in their clutches, a cyberattacker or piece of malware essentially becomes an “insider”.

Controlling, monitoring, and auditing privileges and privileged access—for employees, vendors, systems, applications, IoT, and everything else that touches your IT environments is essential for protecting against both external and internal threat vectors, and for meeting a growing list of compliance requirements.

But, where do you start? Is Unix the biggest area of risk? Or are privileged credentials? What about end-user machines? And once you’ve started, how do you know what areas to focus on next?