Access Control

Discovering “who has access to what” is critical for zero trust and PAM. These six steps will get you started with Access Management.

Role & Access Discovery aims to answer “Does this person, in this role, need access to that system?” Learn why this is a critical part of access management.

Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) is relatively new, and delineating between SRE and DevOps can be confusing. That’s why experts from Splunk, strongDM, and InfluxData have come together to define both roles.

It’s easy to assume that individuals with privileged access will inherently do the right thing, or simply know what they’re doing when accessing systems. That isn’t always the case. Similarly, how often do you check in on your systems with privileged access to understand what they're up to?

Identity-Aware Proxy (IAP) is a Google Cloud Platform service that centralizes user access to SaaS applications and other cloud resources accessed by HTTPS. IAP secures authentication for requests made to virtual machines running on GCP and other cloud-based and on-premises applications, only granting access to users you authorize. With IAP, users can connect from untrusted networks without using a VPN.

Terraform, we are a go for launch on the strongDM provider! We are happy to announce that strongDM has officially launched as a Terraform provider. That means that in one single configuration you can spin up a fleet of servers, import them into strongDM, and provision your users access in a matter of minutes.

Twingate started in 2019 in response to the growing challenges of managing access for a remote workforce. The product offers a zero-trust, cloud-based solution that aims to replace Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) by providing a secure, quick-to-implement solution for IT admins and everyday users. However, if you have a distributed workforce in need of access to databases, Kubernetes clusters, cloud CLIs, switches, routers, or internal web applications, there are other tools to consider. In this blog post, we’ll discuss the strengths and weaknesses of a few alternatives. But first, a side-by-side look at the features you may want to consider.

Thycotic was founded in 1996 as a consulting company and has evolved into a leading provider of Privileged Access Management (PAM). Thycotic’s Privilege Manager is a tool that allows organizations to secure access for privileged administrators (typically systems and database administrators) to Windows Servers, Linux servers, and some database management systems through a centralized authentication method. It does not secure access to modern and cloud-native databases, Kubernetes clusters, the cloud CLIs, switches, routers, or internal web applications.

Tailscale is a zero-configuration virtual private cloud that builds secure networks for WireGuard-encrypted traffic. Tailscale replaces traditional VPNs with a coordination node that acts as a control plane to manage keys and identities. This allows you to create a secure network between cloud resources without the need for firewall configuration changes. However, if your goal is to centralize and secure access to databases, servers, Kubernetes, and more, a VPN (even a fancy modern one) may not be the best approach. In this blog post, we’ll look at the strengths and weaknesses of a few alternatives. First, however, a quick comparison matrix of features may give you the information you’re looking for right away.

AWS Cognito is a user authentication service that lets you add access control to your web and mobile apps. Cognito manages sign-up, sign-in, password changes, token refresh, data synchronization, and updates to user account attributes. The service is initially free for AWS users, and the pricing model scales as your user base grows.

HashiCorp Boundary is an open-source identity access management (IAM) tool that facilitates secure user access to dynamic hosts and critical infrastructure across environments. However, if you need a simple and secure way to manage access to databases, Kubernetes clusters, cloud CLIs, switches, routers, or internal web applications, there are other services to consider. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at a few alternatives and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each. First, a quick side-by-side comparison of the features you may want to consider.

CyberArk’s Privileged Access Manager is a tool that allows organizations to secure access for privileged administrators (typically systems and database administrators) to Windows Servers, Linux servers, and some database management systems via a centralized authentication method. However, if you need to secure access to modern and cloud-native databases, Kubernetes clusters, cloud CLIs, switches, routers, or internal web applications, there are other options to consider.