Identity-based attacks are becoming more prevalent as cybercriminals increasingly assume the identities of entities to access sensitive resources. Recent reports indicate that approximately 83% of attacks involve compromised secrets. Increasingly, attackers prefer to use stolen credentials to breach security rather than exploiting vulnerabilities or misconfigurations.
Non-Human Identities (NHIs) are seen as rich targets—outnumbering human identities in enterprises by at least 50 to 1. Unlike humans, NHIs, such as API keys and service accounts, lack proper multi-factor authentication mechanisms. This reliance on credentials as the primary defense mechanism poses a significant risk.
Traditionally, identity and access management has focused on persistent human traits, but this approach falters when applied to NHIs. Teams often struggle with defining NHIs, which can vary widely across different environments like cloud services, container orchestrators, and legacy systems. This inconsistent approach complicates policy creation and compliance across diverse systems.
As the number of NHIs grows, traditional tools falter in keeping pace. Access reviews become hindered by an overwhelming array of identities, many of which may never have been properly audited. Common issues include a lack of ownership metadata surrounding NHIs, leading to challenges in applying basic lifecycle practices, such as password rotation or decommissioning unused identities.
To manage NHIs effectively, it’s essential to recognize that these identities need to authenticate for their tasks. Secrets, such as tokens and keys, serve as unique identifiers, linking NHIs to the systems they interact with. This relationship offers clearer observability, allowing teams to trace actions back to specific operational needs, thereby improving inventory management and policy enforcement.
By treating secrets as a foundational identity framework, organizations can enhance lifecycle management and align better with Zero Trust principles. Secrets that remain unused or are expired can be quickly flagged for cleanup, mitigating risks associated with identity sprawl.
However, the challenge remains that secrets can be inadvertently exposed. For example, an alarming number of secrets—23.8 million—were leaked from public repositories in a recent year, marking a 25% increase year-over-year. The presence of secrets in both public and private repositories raises the stakes for organizations, as they represent potential pathways for unauthorized access.
Tools like GitGuardian have emerged to help organizations manage this vulnerability. These platforms can inventory secrets, detect unauthorized leaks, and respond proactively to threats. By providing a holistic view of where secrets are stored and how they are being utilized, GitGuardian enables organizations to enforce security policies effectively across all environments.
In summary, focusing on NHIs and managing secrets as unique identifiers is a critical step toward improving organizational security posture. By ensuring visibility and control over both human and non-human identities, companies can significantly reduce risks from identity-based attacks and enhance their overall cybersecurity defenses.
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