Privileged access management best practices

Why is privileged access management important?

Privileged accounts sit at the center of your organization’s network. They’re the accounts with elevated permissions, the ones that can change configurations, create new users, or turn off controls. They’re necessary for your business operations, but they also present a major risk if they’re misused or compromised.

Most breaches start the same way: someone gets access they shouldn’t have. Credential theft, insider misuse, privilege escalation, and lateral movement across poorly segmented systems are some of the most common and effective attack methods. In nearly every major incident, a privileged account plays a role in the breach process.

Privileged access management (PAM) strengthens your overall security posture and supports compliance with standards like NIST 800-53, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, GDPR, HIPAA, and the CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model.

To manage privileged accounts effectively, organizations need a strategy that balances security with usability. By following these privileged access management best practices, you can limit unnecessary access, strengthen authentication, monitor privileged activity, and automate key controls to keep your organization protected and efficient.

Embrace the principle of least privilege

A strong PAM strategy starts with least privilege: the idea that users should only have access to the resources they need, and nothing more. Every unnecessary admin credential widens the attack surface, so reducing privileges is one of the simplest, most effective ways to lower the risk of cyberattacks.

The first of the privileged access management best practices is visibility, mapping out who has elevated permissions and why, then:

• Remove legacy or unused admin accounts.

• Segment access by role and risk level.

• When someone needs higher-level permissions, grant just-in-time (JIT) access: temporary admin rights that expire once the task is complete.

Require advanced multi-factor authentication for privileged accounts

Privileged accounts should always be protected by the strongest possible authentication methods.

Traditional multi-factor authentication (MFA) methods, like SMS or one-time codes, can be phished or intercepted. For high-value accounts, organizations should move toward phishing-resistant MFA, such as FIDO2-compliant security keys or certificate-based authentication. These methods bind login credentials to a trusted device, making them far harder to steal or replay.

Adaptive authentication adds another layer of defense. Instead of treating every login the same, it evaluates factors like device health, user behavior, and location to determine how much verification is needed. A login from a trusted device on a corporate network might only require a standard prompt, while a sign-in from a new location or unmanaged device could trigger additional verification, or block access entirely.

With Cisco Duo, organizations can easily combine phishing-resistant MFA with adaptive authentication to protect privileged accounts in real time, ensuring elevated access is only granted under secure, verified conditions.

Monitor, audit, and log privileged account activity

Visibility is at the core of effective privileged access management. Continuous monitoring shows how privileged credentials are being used and helps detect unusual behavior before a full-blown breach occurs. Real-time alerts can flag suspicious activity, like logins outside normal hours or attempts to access restricted systems, allowing your security teams to act quickly.

Detailed session recording and logging are equally important. Capturing who did what, when, and where helps identify insider threats and provides a clear audit trail for digital forensics, incident response, and compliance reviews.

For developers, security best practices extend to the codebase. Remove any hardcoded credentials from scripts, applications, or DevOps tools, and integrate with your vault instead.