What are some best practices for user-friendly IAM monitoring and evaluation?

Among the top metrics the IAM solution reduces are: - Time users spend on the process of gaining access to various systems over the user's lifetime; - Time (or headcount) the IT support spends on providing access to mentioned systems; - Number of cases tied to non-revoked access of users who switched to another department (or quit).

We've all heard the quotes: "If you can't measure it, you can't improve it" (Peter Drucker) & "A goal without a plan is just a wish" (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry). And the reason we've all heard the quotes is because they contain more than just a grain of truth. Defining goals & metrics is critical to any change management programme and this is especially true of Identity & Access Management initiatives in the current 'Zero Trust' paradigm, which firmly places identity management at the very centre of its strategy (architecture & policy), tactics (implementations & procedures) & operations (putting it into action & providing data to feed back into strategy for continual improvement).

Algumas práticas recomendadas para monitoramento e avaliação do IAM incluem: implementação de registros de auditoria detalhados, análise regular de logs de acesso e atividade de usuário, uso de ferramentas de análise de comportamento de usuário para detectar anomalias, implementação de alertas para atividades suspeitas, e revisão periódica de permissões de acesso para garantir conformidade e minimizar riscos.

For effective IAM monitoring, implement a centralized dashboard, automated alerts, and customized reports. Conduct regular audits, monitor data privacy, and integrate with SIEM tools. These practices streamline the process, ensuring enhanced security and compliance.

Ensure that the IAM (Identity and Access Management) monitoring and evaluation tools have intuitive and user-friendly interfaces. Design dashboards and reports that are easy to navigate and understand, with clear visualizations and explanations of key metrics.

IAM Platforms with Strong Dashboard Features include: - Microsoft Entra ID: Offers an overview of sign-ins, user status, security configurations, & alerts - Okta Workforce Identity: dashboard provides quick insights into users, applications, access, & risks - SailPoint: Focuses on governance with dashboards tracking compliance, user provisioning, & RBAC - JumpCloud: Clean dashboard with key insights into users, devices, authentication, & SSO usage - OneLogin: Dashboards prioritize easy visualization of login activity, SSO apps, & security events It's essential to try demos & get hands-on with the dashboard interfaces before committing to any platform. The most effective dashboards align with how IAM teams analyze & act on IAM data.

A centralized IAM dashboard should inherit the topics of any cybersecurity dashboard: program management (number of integrated assets, identity data quality indicators, etc), operations (access requests received/solved, trends in joiners/leavers/movers, average time to solve a request, up time, authentication requests by method, approval requests sent/attended, duration, etc), risk (access trends, risky identities/accounts status, usage of critical services/entitlements, vulnerabilities arised/remediated, events/incidents pending/in progress/solved, etc) and compliance...

Implement customizable alerts and notifications to keep administrators informed of important events and changes in the IAM system. Allow users to set preferences for receiving alerts based on their roles and responsibilities.

Implementing a centralized IAM dashboard involves integrating various components of your IAM system into a single, unified interface that provides visibility and control over identity and access-related activities. Determine what information and functionalities you need from the dashboard. Choose a dashboard solution that meets your requirements. Integrate data sources from all IAM-related systems into the dashboard. This may include directories (like Active Directory), access management systems, identity governance tools, HR systems for user lifecycle data, and security information and event management (SIEM) systems for security alerts. Ensure the dashboard can provide real-time monitoring of IAM events and activities.

I would recommend to spend more time in automation IAM workflows. The more automation in place more efficient and faster resources will get access to the data and in turn enforcing safer controls. Also, security controls enforcement will be consistent thereby less data breaches and insider threats.

Integrate IAM monitoring and evaluation tools with other relevant systems and applications within your organization's IT infrastructure. This includes identity repositories, authentication systems, authorization mechanisms, and logging and auditing platforms.

Automating IAM tasks and workflows can significantly improve efficiency, reduce errors, and enhance security within an organization. Review your IAM processes to identify repetitive, time-consuming, or error-prone tasks that are suitable for automation. Common candidates include user account provisioning/de-provisioning, password resets, access reviews, and compliance reporting. Map out the logic for each workflow you plan to automate. Choose IAM tools that support automation. Ensure that your automation tools can integrate with other systems involved in IAM processes, such as HR systems for onboarding/offboarding, directory services, and access management platforms. Automate the deployment and management of MFA to enhance security.

Collecting and analyzing user feedback is essential for understanding the effectiveness of your services, identifying areas for improvement, & enhancing user satisfaction. Clearly define what you want to learn from the feedback. To improve user experience, identify bugs, or assess the effectiveness of recent changes? Select appropriate methods for collecting feedback based on your objectives. Common methods include surveys, interviews, focus groups, suggestion boxes, user forums, & feedback forms within applications. Create well-structured instruments for collecting feedback. For surveys, use a mix of open-ended questions & rating scales. When requesting feedback, explain to users why their feedback is important & how it will be used.

Empower users to manage their own identities and access privileges through self-service portals and workflows. Allow users to request access rights, reset passwords, update profile information, and perform other IAM-related tasks without requiring intervention from administrators.

Not only should IAM architectures, configurations, policies & procedures be regularly reviewed & updated to maintain currency & relevance, but in world embracing Zero Trust principles IAM implementations should be adaptive in real time. Adaptive IAM (AIAM) offers: 1. Dynamic Risk Assessment based on Continuous Adaptive Risk & Trust Assessment (CARTA) 2. Adaptive Authentication based on assessment of contextual risk factors 3. Adaptive Authorization based continuous real-time assessment of contextual risk factors The above is further explained below (Section 6)

Implement security controls and compliance measures to protect sensitive identity and access data from unauthorized access, disclosure, or tampering. Regularly audit and assess the effectiveness of these controls to ensure adherence to regulatory requirements and industry best practices.

IGA/IAM should be an enterprise wide program, not a project. In that regard, procedures and controls should exist to maintain it aligned to the business operations model. Provision/deprovision processes, approval flows and approvers lists, etc. Also, it should be aligned to the overall IT Strategy Planning and IT Change Management process, in order to keep it updated and to continually assess the impact of changes at the organizational level. Unfortunately, I have yet to see an IGA/IAM solution that is able to keep automated track of changes in all these elements. This is mostly a manual task, very prone to errors. The recommendation here is to keep this always in mind...

Reviewing and updating your Identity and Access Management (IAM) system regularly is crucial to maintaining security, compliance, and efficiency. 1. Schedule Regular Reviews -quarterly, bi-annually, or annually 2. Assess Changes in the Environment 3. Evaluate User Feedback 4.Analyze Security Incidents related to IAM 5. Conduct regular audits of user access rights. 6. Ensure IAM system is in compliance with relevant laws, regulations, and industry standards. 7. Monitor Performance Metrics. 8. Regularly Update IAM Policies and Procedures. 9. Improve Automation 10. Enhance training programs for end-users and administrators to reflect any changes in the IAM system or policies

Design the IAM monitoring and evaluation infrastructure to scale effectively as the organization grows and the number of users and resources increases. Monitor system performance regularly and optimize resources to ensure optimal responsiveness and reliability.

In world embracing Zero Trust principles IAM implementations should be adaptive. Adaptive IAM (AIAM) enhances the ZT approaches by offering: 1. Dynamic Risk Assessment: AIAM evaluates factors beyond simple credentials (UN/PW). It considers: - User behavior patterns (anomalous login times, locations, etc.) - Device security posture (patch status, malware presence) - Network reputation/location - Sensitivity of resources 2. Adaptive Authentication: AIAM adjusts authentication methods based on risk. E.g: - Low Risk: Simple password + MFA - High Risk: Additional factors 3. Continuous Authorization: Unlike IAM, AIAM doesn't stop after initial login. AuthN is continually assessed throughout active sessions, & adapted if/when risk context changes