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Endpoint Privilege Management

Endpoint Privilege Management (EPM) is a security approach that allows organizations to enforce least privilege access on endpoints by controlling user and process-level permissions. Originally developed to prevent users from having unnecessary administrative rights, EPM has evolved alongside modern cybersecurity threats to become a core part of Zero Trust architecture.

Without proper privilege management, organizations face increased risk of insider threats, ransomware, and system compromise. In fact, 74% of data breaches involve privileged credential abuse, according to a Verizon DBIR report.

ManageEngine’s Endpoint Privilege Management solution empowers IT teams to assign temporary or delegated privileges without granting full administrative rights—minimizing attack surfaces while maintaining user productivity. By shifting the focus from user-based to application and process-level control, it ensures security without bottlenecking operations.

Getting Started with Endpoint Privilege Management

Managing privileges across an enterprise requires precision, flexibility, and control. ManageEngine Endpoint Central’s Endpoint Privilege Management (EPM) simplifies this with centralized policy creation, targeted elevation controls, and comprehensive admin rights management—all designed to support least privilege enforcement without disrupting end-user productivity.

  • Granular Privilege Policy Configuration – Administrators can define detailed privilege policies by allowlisting specific applications and processes for elevation. Policies can be tailored to allow elevation for all or select applications using parameters like vendor, product, file hash, store apps, or folder path. These policies are mapped to user groups or device groups, enabling precise control across the organization.
  • Privilege Elevation with Justification – Administrators can enable users to self-elevate their privileges for allowlisted applications by providing a justification. These justifications are logged for auditing purposes, and elevation can be configured in two ways:
    • All allowlisted applications.
    • Specific applications based on administrator-defined rules.
  • Auto Elevation for Approved Applications – Trusted applications can be automatically elevated for selected user groups without the need for manual requests, balancing security with a seamless user experience.
  • Global Admin Rights Overview – The Admin Rights Summary tab offers a comprehensive view of all local admin accounts, showing the Local Admin Count on each computer. This aids in evaluating risk exposure and streamlining privilege remediation across the organization.
  • Admin Rights Removal with Exclusion Policies – Local administrator rights can be revoked manually or automatically from endpoints, with options to retain essential accounts using global Exclusion Policies. Admins can selectively preserve the built-in administrator account, sysadmin account, or any other critical account while removing all unnecessary privileges.
  • Just-In-Time (JIT) Access for Temporary Elevation – EPM supports Just-in-Time access to grant temporary privilege elevation for specific tasks or timeframes. Policies can be configured with fixed duration or access windows and applied to individual computers or applications. This limits persistent privileges and reduces the risk of insider threats and lateral movement.

Enforce Least Privilege Without Compromising Productivity

Define precise privilege policies, remove unnecessary admin rights, and enable secure self-elevation. Our Comprehensive Guide to Endpoint Privilege Management covers best practices for minimizing risk and maintaining control across your enterprise.

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