Topic starter
12/06/2026 9:58 pm
TL;DR: Privileged access management must evolve from protecting a fixed set of admin accounts to governing privileged users, credentials, cloud permissions, OT systems, and non-human identities across hybrid environments, according to Palo Alto Networks. The real shift is that privilege is becoming a dynamic control plane, so standing assumptions about least privilege, delegation, and review windows no longer hold.
Editorial analysis by NHI Mgmt Group, based on content published by Palo Alto Networks: “Executive POV: Privilege as a Dynamic Control Plane”.
By the numbers:
- over 8 in 10 IT leaders are adopting hybrid cloud environments.
Key questions
Q: How should security teams govern privileged access in cloud and hybrid environments?
A: Teams should govern privileged access around runtime authorization, not just connectivity or login.
Q: Why do standing privileges create more risk in hybrid environments?
A: Standing privileges persist across sessions, platforms, and operational handoffs, which expands the window for misuse.
Q: What breaks when privileged service accounts are treated like user admin accounts?
A: Governance breaks because service accounts often need uninterrupted machine execution, not manual session approval.
Practitioner guidance
- Expand the privileged identity inventory Document privileged users, credentials, service accounts and other non-human identities in one inventory so that ownership and review obligations are visible across environments.
- Reclassify cloud permissions by effective reach Assess cloud entitlements by what systems and data they can touch in practice, then remove broad standing access that exceeds the task boundary.
- Bring OT access into PAM governance Apply privileged session oversight and delegation rules to OT systems where privileged actions can change physical outcomes, not just digital state.
Bottom line: Privilege is no longer a narrow admin problem. It now covers cloud permissions, OT access, human users and non-human identities inside one governance model.
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13/06/2026 12:25 am
Privilege has become a control plane, not a user class. That shift matters because modern enterprise access is defined by what an identity can do across cloud, OT and integrated platforms, not just by whether the account belongs to an administrator. PAM programmes that still model privilege as a fixed list of high-value users miss the real governance surface. The implication is that privilege needs continuous scope management across identity types and environments.
A few things that frame the scale:
- 97% of NHIs carry excessive privileges, increasing unauthorised access and broadening the attack surface, according to the Ultimate Guide to NHIs.
A question worth separating out:
Q: Should organisations rely on periodic access reviews for privileged accounts?
A: Periodic reviews are necessary but not sufficient when permissions change faster than the review cycle. They work best as a backstop, not as the primary detection mechanism for privilege drift. Organisations should combine reviews with continuous discovery so that the privileged inventory reflects current access, not last quarter's state.
👉 Read our full editorial: Privilege as a dynamic control plane: PAM must expand across identities