StrongDM Blog (2)

Non-Human Identities & Secrets Sprawl: Why Vaults Aren’t Enough

Non-human identities are fueling secrets sprawl, and vaults alone can’t stop it. Learn why NHIs are the primary source of leaked secrets, the limits

What Is Access Certification? Process, Benefits & Best Practices

Access certification is more than a checkbox; it’s how you prove and enforce least privilege at scale. It ensures every user, system, and role has

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What Is Authorization? Types, Examples, and How It Works

Authorization isn’t just about who gets in, it’s about what they can do once they’re inside. And that’s where most breaches happen. Whether you're enforcing RBAC, ABAC, or context-based policies, effective authorization ensures users only access what they need, no more, no less. This post unpacks how authorization works, compares key models, and explores best practices for enforcing least privilege at scale.

Workforce Identity and Access Management (IAM) Explained

Workforce identity and access management (IAM) secures your internal users, employees, contractors, and engineers by verifying who they are, controlling what they can do, and monitoring how they interact with sensitive systems. It’s the foundation of Zero Trust in a cloud-first world. This guide breaks down everything from SSO and MFA to RBAC, JIT access, and directory services, and how they all work together to keep your workforce productive and protected.

What Is a Compliance Audit? Process, Examples, and How to Prepare

This guide breaks down the types of compliance audits (regulatory, security, financial, and operational), the frameworks they map to, and the real challenges most teams face, like privileged access sprawl and manual tracking.

What Is Context-Aware Authentication? Examples & How It Works

Passwords alone don’t stop breaches anymore. Context-aware authentication changes the game by using real-time signals like device, location, time, and behavior to decide whether access should be granted.

From Legacy PAM to Identity Firewall: The Shift is Here

More than just an incremental improvement, the Identity Firewall is an architectural transformation that enables both security and velocity in modern environments. Organizations ready to lead this transformation will build competitive advantages that extend far beyond security compliance.

The State of Compliance in Financial Institutions Report by StrongDM

StrongDM’s latest survey of 1,000 IT, compliance, and security professionals at financial institutions and fintech firms reveals a telling picture: while confidence in compliance planning is high, operational challenges persist, especially around privileged access management and audit preparedness.

PostgreSQL vs. MySQL: Differences for Tech Leaders & Teams

PostgreSQL or MySQL? It’s the age-old database debate. PostgreSQL shines for complex, write-heavy workloads, rich data types, and ACID compliance. MySQL is fast, lightweight, and perfect for read-heavy web apps and MVPs.

SSH ProxyJump Explained (and a Better Alternative)

SSH ProxyJump (the -J flag) is a more streamlined way to hop between SSH hosts using one or more bastion hosts. Instead of chaining multiple manual connections, ProxyJump creates a single end-to-end SSH session through the specified jump hosts. It was introduced in OpenSSH 7.5 to simplify access to servers that sit behind firewalls or live in private networks.

Data Breach Response Plan: Your Guide to Leak Prevention

A breach isn’t a matter of if, it’s when. In 2023 alone, around 97 million accounts were breached in the US, accounting for one in three cases worldwide. Whether it’s a rogue insider, a phishing attack, or a third-party screwup, your best shot at bouncing back fast is having a clear, tested data breach response plan. This guide walks you through what to include: governance roles, incident severity levels, NIST-based response steps, legal obligations (like GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA), and