How Does Privileged Access Management Work?

Privileged Access Management (PAM) works by controlling, monitoring and securing access to privileged accounts and resources through features such as credential vaulting, just-in-time access control, session management and automation. It enforces the principle of least privilege so that only authorized users and systems have access to sensitive data. 

Continue reading to learn more about how privileged access management works to protect your organization. 

1. Credential vaulting

Credential vaulting is a core component of PAM. It refers to the process of securely managing and storing privileged credentials and secrets, such as passwords, SSH keys and API tokens, within an encrypted, centralized repository known as a vault. This vault protects sensitive credentials from unauthorized access and ensures they are used only in a controlled and audited manner. 

Rather than exposing the actual credentials, PAM uses the vault to inject the credentials on behalf of the user during a session, allowing them to complete an authorized task without ever seeing or handling the credential itself. By doing so, the vault not only protects sensitive credentials from theft or misuse but also enforces strict control over how and when they are accessed. 

2. Just-in-Time (JIT) access

Just-in-Time (JIT) access is a feature of PAM that grants users temporary, elevated access only when it’s needed to perform a specific task. Instead of relying on shared accounts or maintaining standing privileges, JIT grants permissions dynamically, based on real-time need. 

When a user needs to perform a privileged task, they submit an access request through the PAM system. This request will trigger an approval workflow, which may require a manager to sign off to ensure validity. Once approved, the user is granted temporary access via methods like Privileged Elevation and Delegation Management (PDEM), time-bound group memberships, ephemeral accounts or security tokens. These privileges are automatically revoked once the session ends or the task is completed. 

3. Session management

Another feature of PAM is Privileged Session Management (PSM), which secures, monitors and audits all privileged user sessions in real-time. PSM can establish secure sessions by brokering access and injecting credentials directly, without ever revealing them to users. This ensures that sensitive credentials remain protected throughout the session lifecycle.

Administrators can observe sessions for suspicious activity and record them for future analysis, capturing screen content, keystrokes and command logs. PSM also enables organizations to manage sessions by pausing, locking or terminating them if malicious activity is detected. Recorded sessions are stored securely for auditing and compliance purposes and include reporting capabilities that support regulatory requirements.

4. Access control

PAM enforces policy-based access by applying the Principle of Least Privilege (PoLP). This ensures users have only the minimum level of access required to perform their tasks. Limiting access to critical resources reduces privilege misuse and overall, an organization’s attack surface. 

Access policies can be defined based on roles, user groups, device types or job functions by following Role-Based Access Control (RBAC). Advanced PAM solutions may also incorporate context-aware rules, such as allowing access only during certain hours, from specific locations or on trusted devices. For example, access can be permitted only during business hours and from corporate-managed devices. These controls help strengthen security while maintaining operational efficiency. 

5. Compliance support

PAM plays an important role in supporting compliance by generating comprehensive audit trails that provide full visibility into privileged user activity. Regulatory frameworks such as PCI-DSS, HIPAA, SOX and GDPR and ISO 27001 mandate strict control and oversight over access to sensitive systems and data, including the ability to audit and report on privileged actions.

A PAM solution helps meet these requirements by providing detailed audit trails for all privileged activities, tracking user identity, time of access, duration, systems accessed and commands executed. Sessions using protocols such as SSH, RDP, MySQL or HTTPS are fully recorded, with screen and keystroke activity stored in a tamper-evident, encrypted format. These detailed logs enable accurate reporting for audits, streamline risk assessments and support forensic investigations.

6. Alerting and reporting

PAM’s alerting and reporting features provide real-time, context-aware alerts when suspicious behavior or unauthorized activities occur, allowing security teams to investigate and respond immediately to potential threats. These alerts are set up by predefined security thresholds and behavior analytics, which help organizations easily detect insider threats or compromised accounts. When anomalies are detected, PAM generates immediate alerts that can be routed to Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) platforms for further analysis and incident response.

PAM can also maintain detailed, tamper-proof, comprehensive reports that capture the full scope of privileged access activity, including requests, approvals, session durations, visual session recording and command execution. This is especially necessary when it comes to supporting compliance audits, security reviews and incident investigations.

7. Automation

PAM automates critical security processes to reduce the manual workload for administrators by automating the management of privileged accounts. By automating the lifecycle management of privileged accounts, including user provisioning and deprovisioning, access request approvals, password rotation and session management, PAM minimizes manual intervention and reduces the risk of human error. These automated workflows can be orchestrated across diverse environments and aligned with predefined policies to enforce repeatable processes that streamline privileged operations. 

Account discovery and onboarding is also a key feature in PAM systems that automatically finds and brings privileged accounts under management. It can scan an organization’s environment on a scheduled basis, on demand or continuously to identify accounts with elevated access, such as admin or root accounts. This process also includes detecting the systems and services, like servers or virtual machines, where these accounts exist. 

8. Integration with other systems

PAM integrates with other security and IT systems to streamline administration and strengthen risk management. Solutions like KeeperPAM work alongside Identity and Access Management (IAM) platforms to enforce role-based access policies, while integrating with SIEM systems for real-time threat detection and audit logging. PAM also aligns with IT Service Management (ITSM) tools to support change management workflows and endpoint detection and response solutions to provide behavioral insights tied to privileged activity. When it comes to identity verification, PAM supports Single Sign-On (SSO), MFA and directory services such as Active Directory (AD) and LDAP. These integrations help enforce zero-trust principles and prevent unauthorized access. 

Choose KeeperPAM^® as your PAM solution

PAM is a set of security controls that work together to protect sensitive accounts and systems. By securing privileged credentials, enforcing strict access policies and providing real-time monitoring, PAM helps organizations reduce the risk of cyber threats.

The most effective way to manage privileged access is by using a dedicated PAM solution like KeeperPAM, which is built on a zero-trust security model.

Request a demo of KeeperPAM today to see how we can streamline your privileged access management, enhance security and improve operational efficiency.