IAM vs PAM: What’s the Difference And Why It Matters

IAM and PAM refer to similar topics in the world of access management, and they’re often used interchangeably. However, it’s important to understand how and why they’re different and what that means for your wider cybersecurity strategy. If you want to find out more, you’re in the right place. In this blog, we discuss:

• The key difference between PAM and IAM;
• The challenge of modern PAM and IAM;
• What features can you expect to find in IAM and PAM tools?

IAM vs PAM: Defining the Basics

IAM and PAM are different concepts in cybersecurity, but there is significant crossover between them – and often they form two parts of a larger strategy. They refer to two methods that organizations use to govern how they identify users in the organization and what assets and information each account has access to. Here are the key differences:

• Identity Access Management (IAM) – This refers to any policy that an organization uses to govern identities and access permissions. It involves all users and accounts, regardless of what level of privilege they might require and the information they access. A key goal of IAM policies, therefore, is to maintain a database of identities, known in Windows environments as the active directory (AD).
• Privileged Access Management (PAM) – PAM is a subset of IAM and refers to any policies that specifically manage access to sensitive information and IT assets. This includes managing who has the ability to install applications, make changes to operating systems, and access sensitive information on employees and customers.

Key Differences Between IAM and PAM

So why do we need to distinguish IAM from PAM?

In short, it all comes down to risk. Privileged accounts have access to the most critical assets and information in an environment. The risk these accounts pose is therefore several times higher than their non-privileged counterparts.

That means organizations generally use a distinct set of policies to govern privileged user access, using specialist privileged access management software. Many of the features these tools offer (eg session monitoring, just-in-time access) are specific to PAM and aren’t generally used on non-privileged accounts.

To add to the confusion, however, there are several techniques that might apply to either IAM or PAM strategies depending on how they’re used. Multi-factor authentication and single sign on, for instance, might be used as part of either an IAM or PAM strategy, depending on which accounts an organization chooses to apply them to.

But perhaps the most notable difference is in approach. At its most simple, IAM focuses on identities, ensuring everybody in the organization has a trusted digital identity that can be tracked, monitored, and managed. PAM concerns itself more with protecting specific sensitive assets. Specifically, it uses the policy of ‘least privilege‘ to reduce privileged access to the smallest possible amount.

The Challenge of Managing Access in Modern IT Environments

If you work in marketing, you should be able to make changes to articles on the website. But you shouldn’t have access to development code or finance databases. So PAM is all about identifying the person, the user, and the role – and setting up rules for what you should be able to see based on that.

Mikkel Pederson, Head of Global Sales Enablement, Heimdal®

Whether we’re referring to IAM or PAM, there are several factors that make these policies a unique challenge. Much of this comes down to the proliferation of cloud and hybrid environments.

In traditional IT environments, the vast majority of users accessed information from a desktop computer via a wired network, in a self-contained office. Often, access management policies simply required robust password controls and a series of firewalls. Against this backdrop, the distinction between privileged and non-privileged accounts was less important.

Now, users can log in from any device or location. This makes it much more difficult to distinguish between a genuine employee and a hacker. For that reason, a new set of tools and features have developed across the last decade to effectively achieve both PAM and IAM in cloud environments. This includes many of the features we discuss below.

But there’s another key challenge when it comes to both IAM and PAM. The proliferation of extended PAM tools makes it much more difficult for hackers to target and access privileged accounts. Often, that means they choose to infiltrate non-privileged accounts first, since they’re much less likely to arouse suspicion. From there, they can use a variety of lateral movement techniques to survey the environment, identify weak spots, and subsequently elevate their own privileges.

This is an important distinction, because it means the success of your non-privileged access policies can still impact the safety of your most critical assets and information.

However we define the difference between these two terms, therefore, it’s important that organizations combine robust IAM and PAM policies. Ultimately, neither strategy is totally complete without the other.

IAM vs. PAM Tools: What Features Should You Look Out For?

To reduce your exposure to the most advanced cybersecurity threats, it’s important to get hold of the right technology. Put simply, it’s impossible to manually manage access to the ever-growing web of accounts, endpoints, software, and cloud assets. But knowing which tools to get can be a challenge, since PAM and IAM features tend to be available in different products.

So what’s the difference?

1.   Identity Access Management Tools

IAM products are generally more readily available than PAM, and often they’re packaged together as part of larger platforms. Organizations using Microsoft 365 and Windows, for instance, will generally have access to the Microsoft Active Directory, as well as features like multi-factor authentication and single sign on.

This can be both a benefit and a challenge. Unlike PAM, you’re less likely to need a dedicated IAM solution. In fact, there’s a good chance you already have access to some effective IAM controls. But the downside is they tend to be designed specifically for use within the environment they were designed for (e.g.Microsoft), and might not be as effective at monitoring access to third-party systems.

Here’s an overview of the features you might expect to find in an IAM solution:

• Active directory: A centralized directory of digital identities. Ideally, each user should be associated with a single account.
• Password policies: Ensuring passwords are strong, regularly changed, and unique.
• Multi-factor authentication: Adding smartphone notifications, biometrics, or other additional verification stages to strengthen and control access to accounts.
• Single sign on: Associating multiple logins with a single identity, effectively simplifying effective security by linking different accounts to a single username and password.
• Role-based access controls: Granting access permissions based on people’s roles. This makes it easier to ensure everyone has the right level of access for their needs.

2.   Privileged Access Management Tools

Privileged access management (PAM) features, on the other hand, tend to be available in self-contained products. Generally, they’re released by third-party cybersecurity vendors like Heimdal®, rather than for example Microsoft, Amazon, or Apple.

These tools tend to focus more on defending assets than identifying people. Though in practice, many of the strategies to achieve this are the same. That being said, PAM software generally offers features that aren’t available in traditional IAM tools, such as:

• Session recording – This is designed to monitor and record all instances where privileged information is accessed or changed. This makes it easier for organizations to spot suspicious activity and assess the damage of a successful attack.
• Just-in-time access – A set of automated policies to ensure access is conditional and time-limited. Generally, users must have a specific reason for the system to grant access, and it is revoked again after a pre-defined period.
• Password vaulting – This is when passwords are encrypted inside a secure password vault. Access to that vault can be granted via a password manager, often without the user themselves needing to know or see the plain text password.

Features like this work alongside traditional IAM controls to ensure a dynamic and effective overall security posture.

A Unified Approach to Access Management

The whole basis of effective IAM and PAM is to take away a user’s right to make significant changes. On a day-to-day basis, most users are using files and software that’s already installed. Very few people need to make significant changes to a system to do their job.

Mikkel Pederson, Head of Global Sales Enablement, Heimdal®

Whatever PAM and IAM policies you’re investing in, one thing’s for sure: a modern cybersecurity strategy isn’t complete without either. The landscape of threat is complex and fast-moving. By far the best approach is to layer different technologies, protections, and policies together, to ensure the best possible coverage.

By all likelihood, you’ll already have access to a robust set of IAM policies in the operating system or cloud environment you’re already using. But if you want to add effective PAM protections on top, there’s a good chance you’ll also need a specialist PAM solution like Heimdal®. With this, you’ll have secure access to a range of features, such as:

• Customizable real-time access-blocking policies;
• Just-in-time access;
• Role-based access controls and delegation policies from one central window;
• Approve or reject escalations with one click;
• Access a complete audit trail of privileged user behavior.

Combined with the right IAM policies, this will give you a far-reaching and robust set of protections that will keep your organization safe from the most modern cybersecurity threats.

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FAQs

What is the main difference between IAM and PAM?

IAM (identity and access management) focuses on managing user identities and access to resources for regular users, while PAM (privileged access management) specifically addresses the control and security of privileged accounts with elevated permissions.

How do IAM and PAM impact security strategies differently?

IAM strengthens overall access control by managing user authentication, authorization, and lifecycle management. In contrast, PAM provides additional layers of security by tightly controlling and monitoring privileged account access, mitigating insider threats and unauthorized access risks.

What tools are commonly associated with IAM and PAM implementations?

IAM solutions include identity management platforms like Azure AD and Okta, offering features such as single sign on and role-based access controls. On the other hand, PAM solutions such as Heimdal offer features like password vaulting, just-in-time access, and session monitoring.

Cristian Neagu

CONTENT EDITOR

Cristian is a Content Editor & Creator at Heimdal®, where he developed a deep understanding of the digital threat landscape. His style resonates with both technical and non-technical readers, proof being in his skill of communicating cybersecurity norms effectively, in an easy-to-understand manner.