When we talk about cybersecurity, attention is often focused on external threats: ransomware, phishing, targeted attacks. However, in the vast majority of serious incidents, the entry point is not external.
It is internal.
More specifically: a poorly controlled privileged account.

System administrators, service accounts, extended technical access… These identities have enough rights to bypass most security mechanisms, often without triggering any immediate alert.

What Is a Privileged Account?

A privileged account is an identity with elevated rights on a system, application, or infrastructure:

• Administrator accounts (Windows, Linux, Active Directory)

• Root accounts

• Application service accounts

• DBA access, hypervisors, network devices

• Shared technical accounts

These accounts are essential for business operations, but they are also the primary target for attackers.

Why Are Privileged Accounts the Number One Internal Risk?

1. They Provide Direct Access to Critical Systems
   One compromised privileged account can allow:

• Modifying security configurations

• Accessing sensitive data

• Creating new accounts

• Disabling logs or controls

👉 One single compromise could be enough to take complete control of the IT system.

2. They Are Often Poorly Managed
   In many organizations, we see:

• Passwords that are never renewed

• Accounts shared between several teams

• Access retained after a position change

• Little to no traceability of actions performed

👉 As a result, it becomes impossible to know who did what, when, and why.

3. They Facilitate “No Malware” Attacks
   Modern attackers seek to blend into legitimate usage:

• Native system tools

• Valid authentications

• Authorized commands

These attacks often fly under the radar of antivirus and EDR systems because nothing seems abnormal from a technical standpoint.

4. They Amplify the Internal Risk (Whether Intentional or Not)
   Internal risk doesn’t always mean malicious intent:

• Human error

• Mistaken actions

• Excessive, unjustified access

• Departing employees with active rights

👉 An overlooked or mismanaged account becomes a permanent entry point for an external attacker.

🔎 Are You Truly in Control of Your Privileged Accounts?

Most organizations cannot clearly answer these questions:

• How many privileged accounts actually exist?

• Which accounts are shared?

• Which accesses are excessive or obsolete?

• Which service accounts have critical rights?

👉 To help you gain clarity, we’ve created an operational checklist.

📥 Free Checklist – Privileged Account Audit

Download our checklist “10 Key Control Points to Audit Your Privileged Accounts” and quickly identify your main risk areas.

What You’ll Get:

• The essential controls to check first

• The most common errors observed in the field

• Indicators of high-risk privileged accounts

• A solid foundation to initiate a remediation plan

👉 Download the Privileged Account Checklist
(Free access – No commitment required)

The Concrete Impacts on the Business

Poor management of privileged accounts can lead to:

• Leaks of sensitive data

• Shutdown of critical services

• Complete compromise of the IT system

• Regulatory non-compliance (PCI DSS, ISO 27001, client audits)

• Loss of client and partner trust

In sectors like banking, telecom, industry, fintech, or public services, these impacts are often significant and costly.

Why Classic Solutions Are No Longer Enough

Firewalls, antivirus, EDR, or traditional IAM remain essential, but:

• They don’t finely control the use of privileges

• They don’t always offer detailed traceability of actions

• They don’t sufficiently limit excessive access over time

👉 Privileged account management requires a dedicated and structured approach.

The Right Approach: Govern, Control, and Trace Privileges
An effective strategy relies on:

• The principle of least privilege

• Temporary and justified access

• Role separation

• Complete action logging

• Privileged session supervision

This is precisely the objective of Privileged Access Management (PAM).

How Diamond Security Consulting Helps You

At Diamond Security Consulting, in partnership with P1 Security, we help organizations to:

• Identify exposed privileged accounts

• Assess the real risks related to internal access

• Structure privileged access governance adapted to the business context

• Provide a clear and prioritized roadmap

Our approach is pragmatic, progressive, and risk-reduction focused, not just technological.

🎯 Take Action

Privileged accounts are today’s primary lever used in a successful compromise.
👉 Download the Privileged Account Audit Checklist
👉 Or request a personalized audit of your privileged access.