Did you know that ineffective privilege management in ERP systems can cost you dearly? Your company could be losing thousands of hours of skilled labor because of it. This problem affects many large organizations, but fortunately there is a simpler solution than you might think. That’s why, in this article, we’ll go into detail on how to effectively conduct entitlement reviews, why it’s a business task and not a purely technical one, and suggest how to avoid common access management mistakes.
Janek’s story: how one employee can become a “mine” of risky entitlements
Imagine a modern, green company with international reach. Janek joins the logistics department and is given basic privileges in the SAP system that allow him to enter supplier data and place orders.
After a year, Janek climbs the career ladder and is promoted to the position of salesman. Along with his new role, he is given further privileges, this time related to sales. A few years later, he becomes a sales manager, which entails even broader access to the system. However, the question arises: what happens to his previous entitlements from the logistics department? In most cases, they remain active because no one thought to take them away, or it was argued that they could “help colleagues in the department.”
Such a scenario, replicated over years and across multiple employees, poses serious security risks to the company. A sales manager, who still has logistics authority, can perform operations that violate the principle of separation of duties (SOD), such as modifying supplier data and approving payments on his own.
Effective entitlement lifecycle management – the key to organizational security
Privilege management is a process that encompasses the full life cycle of access – from the moment it is granted, through possible modifications, to the final withdrawal. The initial stage, the granting of privileges, is usually well organized – the employee himself makes a request for the access needed to perform his duties. Unfortunately, the subsequent phases of the cycle very often remain neglected.
Mature organizations have already implemented authorization processes based on risk analysis and automated workflows. Decisions are approved by business owners, and permissions are assigned automatically in systems. Unfortunately, equally sophisticated processes for reviewing and revoking permissions are still a rarity.
To effectively manage the entitlement lifecycle, it is essential:
- Precise definition of roles and responsibilities,
- Automation of processes related to granting and revoking authorizations,
- Conducting regular reviews focused on risk identification,
- Monitoring the degree of use of its powers,
- Implement appropriate tools to support the entire process.
Entitlement review – business responsibility, not just IT
A common mistake is to view entitlement management as the exclusive domain of the IT department. Meanwhile, it is the business that shapes the processes and is responsible for the various steps and checkpoints.
IT professionals can administer the technical aspects, but it is the decision-makers who know the business processes who should determine who has access to certain data and functions. Only they are in a position to assess whether the privileges in question are still needed by the employee, whether they pose a potential threat, and whether they comply with the principle of minimum privilege.
The problem often lies in the way IT presents authorizations – as codes and role names that are incomprehensible to the business and do not translate into specific operations. It’s hard to expect a sales manager to understand what “Z1000_LOGISTICS role” means and what risks are associated with a subordinate having it.
The “Entitlement Collector Syndrome” – How to avoid unnecessary access to systems
Janek is a typical example of an “entitlement collector.” As his career progresses, he accumulates more and more accesses without getting rid of the previous ones. This phenomenon, present in almost every organization, poses a serious security risk.
To prevent this syndrome, regular, intelligent reviews of entitlements are necessary. Instead of analyzing all detailed authorizations (which would be inefficient), focus on sensitive functions and potential risks.
It is also crucial to check whether the entitlements in question are being used at all. Experts’ experience shows that often redundant privileges remain unused for a year or more. Such inactive accesses should be taken away as a priority.
Five cardinal mistakes in the entitlement review process
Analyzing experiences from various projects, there are five most common mistakes made in the entitlement review process:
- treating the review as an IT-only task – as already mentioned, decisions on entitlements should be at the discretion of the business,
- reviewing all permissions instead of focusing on potential threats – analyzing hundreds of detailed permissions for each user is inefficient and discourages business owners,
- presenting permissions in technical language – managers need information about what business operations a user can perform, not what technical permission codes they have,
- Lack of information about the actual use of entitlements – knowing whether an entitlement has been used makes it significantly easier to decide whether to withhold or revoke it,
- Manual preparation of data for review – in large organizations this can take weeks and be subject to numerous errors.
Power overview in practice: from basics to advanced solutions
An effective privilege review should focus on business risks, not technicalities. Instead of presenting business owners with a list of roles and permissions, show them the potential risks of employee accesses.
For example, instead of communicating that “Janek has the role Z1000_LOGISTICS,” it is better to convey that “Janek, as a sales manager, can perform critical warehouse operations, such as inventory or warehouse releases, which creates a risk of fraud.”
It’s also a good idea to provide information on the actual use of the entitlements – whether the employee has actually used the functions in question recently. Unused permissions are usually a good candidate for deletion.
In large organizations, reviewing authorizations without the right tools is virtually impossible. Specialized GRC (Governance, Risk, and Compliance) systems can streamline the entire process by automating data preparation, presenting entitlements in a way that the business can understand, and documenting decisions for audits.
Do you have full knowledge of your employees’ privileges in ERP systems?
Many organizations are not fully aware of the scope of permissions held by employees in ERP systems and other key applications. The situation is complicated by the fact that permissions can be granted at different levels – directly, through roles, groups or profiles.
An analogy might be the situation with door keys: what good does it do us to see who has a dedicated key to the archives if employees were once given universal keys that fit all locks? As a result, many employees may have access to sensitive areas, even though officially they shouldn’t have it.
A comprehensive privilege review should consider all possible access paths and potential security workarounds. Only then can you be sure that the principle of minimum preference is actually observed.
Permissions in ERP systems: how to turn a time-consuming process into an effective security tool
An entitlement review need not at all be an onerous chore that consumes valuable working hours. With the right approach and choice of tools, it can become an effective way to strengthen company security and ensure regulatory compliance.
The key elements of this approach are:
- Focusing on business risks rather than technical details,
- Presenting entitlements in a language that business can understand,
- providing information on the actual use of entitlements,
- Automation of data preparation for review,
- Use of appropriate tools to support the entire process.
A well-thought-out process, supported by the right tools, makes entitlement review faster and more efficient. With such a model, instead of spending hundreds of hours on manual analysis, the organization focuses on identifying and mitigating real access risks.
