Least privilege is the core defense against privilege escalation. It means every account, process, and service only gets the minimum permissions needed to do its job. No more. The moment an attacker gains entry, excessive permissions turn a minor breach into full system compromise.
Privilege escalation happens when a user or process gains more access than intended. It can be vertical—jumping from low-level rights to admin—or horizontal—moving from one user’s permissions to another’s. Both routes exploit gaps in access control design, misconfigurations, stale permissions, or vulnerable code paths.
To stop privilege escalation, enforce least privilege at every layer. Start with identity management. Audit all accounts and roles. Remove unused permissions. Avoid shared credentials. Tie every role to specific, documented responsibilities.
Implement strict role-based access control (RBAC) or attribute-based access control (ABAC). Use short-lived credentials and rotate secrets often. Limit standing access, especially for admin rights, by gating them behind approval workflows or just-in-time provisioning tools.