Why Access Reviews matter?

One of the critical components of proper IT security and compliance is conducting regular employee access reviews.

Access Reviews are regular audits of user permissions within an organization's software landscape.

They help ensure that each user only has the access they need, adhering to the Principle of Least Privilege.

Why user Access Reviews matter

Access reviews are vital to protect your company’s data, and maintain IT compliance.

Failing to conduct regular access reviews can lead to significant security threats. It potentially exposes sensitive data to unauthorized users, including ex-employees, thereby increasing the risk of data breaches.

Additionally, missing access reviews may breach regulations and certifications such as ISO 27001, SOC 1, SOC 2, PCI DSS, HIPAA, that require access reviews.

Therefore, regular access reviews are essential for maintaining data security and regulatory compliance.

What does the access review process look like and are there templates?

Typical steps in the access review process are listed below. You can use this as your access review template.

1: Preparation

• Determine the scope of the access review. What applications, systems, or data sets will you be examining?
• Decide the frequency of reviews (quarterly, semi-annually, annually). Regulatory requirements and/or company policies may dictate this.
• Identify the key stakeholders for the process. This could include the HR department, departmental managers, data protection officer, etc.

2: Data Gathering

• Identify all systems and applications used by employees within the scope of the review.
• For each application or system, log in and list all active user accounts.
• Gather existing data on what level of access each user account has, including the specific roles assigned within each application or system.
• Obtain information on the job roles associated with each user account from HR or respective managers.

3: Review and Identification

• Compare each user's real-world job role with their roles within the applications, as well as their access rights in each system.
• Identify instances where access rights or roles within applications do not align with actual job responsibilities. These could be excessive rights, insufficient rights, or mismatched roles.
• Check for dormant accounts that are no longer in use but still have active access rights.

4: Rectification

• Revoke excessive access rights or adjust roles within applications as needed.
• Update insufficient access rights or roles to ensure users can perform their roles effectively.
• Deactivate or delete dormant or unnecessary accounts.

5: Reporting and Documentation

• Document all changes made during the review, including both access right modifications and role adjustments within applications.
• Prepare a report summarizing the review process, findings, and changes made.
• Share the report with relevant stakeholders.

6: Follow-up Actions

• Update internal policies or procedures as needed based on the findings.
• Address potential training needs for employees to understand their access rights, roles within applications, and related responsibilities.
• Plan and schedule the next access review.

7: Continuous Monitoring

• Implement real-time monitoring, alerts, and audit logs to continuously watch for anomalies in user access and behavior.
• Regularly update the user roles and their corresponding access needs.

Can I manually run Access Reviews?

Conducting access reviews manually through spreadsheets, helpdesk tickets, and email threads can work out. But this is a time-consuming and error-prone approach.

How can I automate Access Reviews?

Access Management solutions help you to automate access reviews, streamlining the review process for IT and Security teams.

This includes:

• Automated tracking of all user access data for full central documentation
• Scheduling regular audits, sending reminders to reviewers, and tracking responses
• Automatically enforcing actions based on the review results

This can significantly reduce manual effort and the risk of human error.