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Overview of Privileged Session Manager

Privileged accounts—those with elevated rights to configure systems, manage identities, and access sensitive resources—are essential to IT operations, but also represent one of the most critical security risks in modern enterprises. Whether exploited externally or misused internally, these accounts can be leveraged to inflict widespread damage if not properly controlled.

Privileged Access Management (PAM) is the discipline of securing these accounts by enforcing policies for just-in-time access, auditability, and least privilege. EmpowerID addresses this challenge with a modern PAM solution designed to support both traditional and cloud-native systems, applying the principle of Zero Standing Privilege (ZSP) to ensure access is never left open or unmonitored.

ℹ️PAM Importance

Privileged accounts are high-value targets for attackers. Effective PAM is crucial for maintaining security and preventing unauthorized access to sensitive systems and data.

EmpowerID’s PAM Architecture​

EmpowerID provides two flexible deployment models to meet varying enterprise needs:

  • Advanced PAM — A modern, agentless, vaultless solution that integrates deeply with EmpowerID’s IGA/AM platform
  • Basic PAM — A vault-based model offering secure credential management with policy enforcement and password rotation

Both models are built to scale with your infrastructure and are governed by centralized policies and workflows.

Advanced PAM​

Scalable, Vaultless Privileged Access​

EmpowerID’s Advanced PAM model is designed for modern enterprises that require agile, scalable security controls without the operational complexity of traditional PAM tools. By removing the need for credential vaults or endpoint agents, Advanced PAM simplifies deployment while maintaining strong security and auditability.

💡Advanced PAM Benefits

The agentless and vaultless architecture of Advanced PAM reduces deployment complexity and maintenance overhead while providing comprehensive protection across your infrastructure.

Advanced PAM is built on a microservices-based Kubernetes framework and is fully integrated with EmpowerID’s identity and access control ecosystem.

Zero Standing Privilege (ZSP)​

At the core of Advanced PAM is ZSP—a model in which no user has persistent privileged access. Instead, privileged access is requested and granted dynamically based on policy, time window, and approval requirements.

⚠️ZSP Implementation

When implementing ZSP, ensure proper planning and testing to avoid disrupting critical business operations while maintaining security.

This approach minimizes the attack surface while ensuring users receive the access they need, when they need it, and only for as long as necessary.

Agentless and Vaultless Architecture​

Advanced PAM operates without requiring agents to be deployed on target systems or credentials to be stored in a central vault. Sessions are initiated and controlled through EmpowerID policies, reducing infrastructure requirements and eliminating credential sprawl.

Microservices and Kubernetes​

The solution’s foundation in containerized microservices, deployed via Kubernetes, supports elastic scalability, resilience, and modularity. Services can be scaled horizontally or vertically depending on workload demand and organizational size.

IGA and AM Integration​

Advanced PAM is tightly integrated with EmpowerID’s IGA and Access Management services. It also supports integration with external platforms such as Microsoft Azure, allowing for consistent access governance, audit enforcement, and policy reuse across systems.

Controlled Privilege Escalation and Delegation​

Administrators can define workflows to grant time-limited elevated privileges, either on request or automatically. Delegation policies ensure users can perform specific tasks without granting unrestricted administrative access.

Privileges can be configured with:

  • Role or attribute-based eligibility
  • Conditional access triggers
  • Expiration times
  • Approval workflows

Cloud Infrastructure Entitlements Management (CIEM)​

As part of its Advanced PAM feature set, EmpowerID supports CIEM to provide visibility and control over cloud entitlements. This enables organizations to detect and correct overly permissive cloud identities, reducing risk in AWS, Azure, GCP, and other environments.

Basic PAM​

Vault-Based Credential Management​

For organizations that prefer or require traditional PAM practices, EmpowerID offers a Basic PAM model centered around a secure credential vault. This model supports password rotation, policy-based access, and detailed auditing.

ℹ️Basic PAM Features

Basic PAM provides essential credential management capabilities with a focus on security and compliance through centralized vaulting and automated password rotation.

Secure Credential Vault​

Credentials are stored in an encrypted central vault protected by role-based access controls. Access to these credentials is restricted and fully audited.

Granular Access Policies​

Administrators define access rules that determine:

  • Which users or roles may access credentials
  • Time-bound access windows
  • Approval steps and multi-factor authentication
  • Session logging and expiration conditions

This allows for strict compliance with internal policies and external regulations.

Automated Password Rotation​

To reduce the risk of compromised credentials, Basic PAM supports automated password rotation:

  • On check-in
  • On a defined schedule (e.g., every 24 hours)
  • On trigger (e.g., after policy violation or account compromise)

Passwords are rotated using secure programmatic interfaces and logged for auditability.

Integration with the EmpowerID Platform​

EmpowerID’s PAM capabilities are fully integrated into its broader identity and access management platform, which includes IGA, AM, workflow orchestration, and policy enforcement.

💡Integration Benefits

The integrated platform approach reduces complexity, enhances security, and improves operational efficiency by providing a unified system for identity and access management.

Unified Identity Interface​

Administrators can manage identities, access rights, entitlements, session policies, and credential lifecycles from a single, web-based interface.

Consistent Security Controls​

By embedding PAM into IGA/AM policies, organizations can enforce least-privilege access, ensure separation of duties, and centralize audit trails—reducing risk and improving operational oversight.

Scalability and Adaptability​

The platform’s modular architecture supports growing environments and adapts to changes across hybrid and multi-cloud infrastructure.

Compliance and Auditing​

EmpowerID provides robust auditing and reporting features to support regulatory compliance efforts such as SOX, HIPAA, GDPR, and ISO 27001.

ℹ️Compliance Support

The platform's comprehensive auditing and reporting capabilities help organizations maintain compliance with various regulatory requirements and internal policies.

Audit logs include:

  • Privileged session access history
  • Credential request approvals
  • Session recordings (where applicable)
  • Policy violations and response actions

Next Steps​

Begin your implementation or learn more about managing privileged sessions with the following guides: