Overseas Retail Bank

Background & Challenge

In the private banking sector, protecting client information is crucial, but this overseas bank faced several challenges threatening data security:

• Data Breaches and Credential Misuse

  The bank faced constant risks from outside attackers targeting sensitive customer and financial data. Internal threats were also a major concern, as employees misusing access or privileged credentials falling into the wrong hands could bypass security measures and compromise important systems.

• Excessive and Standing Privileges

  Granting employees more access rights than necessary elevated risks. The presence of "standing privileges" meant some insiders had constant access to sensitive systems without re-verification, reducing visibility into organizational activities and increasing the risk of security breaches or accidental changes.

• Siloed Identity Security Technology

  The customer initially used another vendor's solution, but product limitations made monitoring across their production environment difficult. They urgently needed a solution to improve visibility, efficiently track changes, and enable faster responses to anomalies.

Solution

To address these challenges, the Head of Network and System Administrators chose to deploy RankEZ PAM to enhance their security infrastructure. Selected for its advanced tiering capabilities and shared-services architecture, the bank implemented the solution in phases:

• Phase 1: Centralized Admin Passwords

  The bank centralized administrative passwords, securely storing and managing all privileged credentials in a centralized vault. This ensured access was tightly controlled and constantly monitored, significantly reducing the risk of unauthorized access.

• Phase 2: Session Management and Recording

  The bank enhanced its capabilities by monitoring and recording all privileged sessions, providing a comprehensive audit trail. This crucial step allowed them to review actions, detect suspicious activities promptly, and enable compliance with regulatory standards.

Benefit

Deploying RankEZ PAM had an immediate positive impact on the organization:

• Automation and Least-Privilege Model

  The implementation successfully supported a least-privilege model by securing access and vaulting passwords, significantly minimizing unauthorized access risks. Automating password management reduced manual intervention, enhanced user convenience, and reduced errors.

• Automatic Password Rotation and High Adoption

  The bank implemented automatic password rotation to regularly update passwords, reducing risks associated with static credentials. Because the system was user-friendly and met operational requirements, it achieved a 100% adoption rate among the IT team.

• Integrated Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

  Adding MFA provides an extra layer of security by requiring multiple verification factors, significantly reducing unauthorized access risks.

• Meeting Strict Regulatory Compliance

  The solution helped the bank build robust operational resilience and risk management practices, ensuring they could confidently comply with strict local financial regulations like DORA and FINMA.

Next Steps

With current challenges addressed, the overseas bank is looking toward future security enhancements:

• Securing Remote Access

  Business users, partners, and vendors require continuous access to applications and databases. The bank plans to adopt the RankEZ Remote Access Gateway solution to support centralized, secure remote access, reduce vulnerabilities, and utilize AI capabilities to improve efficiency and streamline compliance.

• Endpoint Privilege Management and Application Control

  To mitigate malware and prevent application exploitation, the customer plans to deploy RankEZ Endpoint Privilege Management. This will remove local administrative rights and enforce least privilege directly on endpoints.

Quote

"We are no longer concerned about the challenges associated with monitoring privileged access. By implementing RankEZ PAM, we have significantly lowered the risks of insider threats, human errors, and misuse of privileged access. This improved monitoring provides us with greater confidence in our security posture.": Head of Network and System Administrators, Overseas Private Bank "RankEZ's approach effectively separates various management functions from the actual secrets or privileged accounts, which enhances both security and efficiency.": Head of Network and System Administrators, Overseas Private Bank