Description:
The User Access Administrator role in Azure Active Directory (Entra ID) is a highly privileged role that allows users to manage access to Azure resources and roles within the directory. This role provides broad permissions, such as granting or modifying role assignments, which could potentially allow malicious users to escalate their privileges or access sensitive resources.
To reduce security risks, it is crucial to restrict the use of the 'User Access Administrator' role to only trusted and authorized personnel. Automating the restriction ensures that only a small number of administrators with legitimate needs are able to assign this role, minimizing the risk of unauthorized role assignments and privilege escalation.
Rationale:
Minimize privilege escalation: The User Access Administrator role allows modification of role assignments, which can lead to escalated access and unauthorized permissions if misused.
Enhance security: Restricting the use of this role reduces the risk of a user inadvertently granting excessive permissions or accessing sensitive resources.
Ensure compliance: Limiting access to the User Access Administrator role is a best practice that helps organizations adhere to the principle of least privilege, a foundational concept in cybersecurity.
Impact:
Restricting the User Access Administrator role will:
Limit role assignment management to trusted administrators, reducing the risk of unauthorized changes to access permissions.
Increase administrative overhead, as fewer users will be able to assign or manage access roles. However, this can be mitigated by using a well-defined approval process for role assignments.
Improve governance by centralizing the management of high-privilege roles and reducing the attack surface in your Azure environment.
Default Value:
By default, the User Access Administrator role is available to a wider set of users, including those with Global Administrator permissions. This can lead to a broader-than-necessary use of the role.
Pre-requisites:
Azure subscription with Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) configured.
Global Administrator or Privileged Role Administrator permissions to configure the restriction.
Role-based access control (RBAC) configuration in place for managing Azure permissions.
Audit:
Sign in to Azure portal as a Global Administrator or Privileged Role Administrator.
Navigate to Azure Active Directory > Roles and administrators.
Review the list of users assigned to the User Access Administrator role and ensure that only authorized individuals are granted this role.
Implementation Steps (Automated):
Sign in to Azure portal:
Use an account with Global Administrator or Privileged Role Administrator permissions.
Navigate to Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD):
In the Azure portal, go to Azure Active Directory.
Go to Roles and Administrators:
In the Azure Active Directory pane, select Roles and administrators under the Manage section.
Review Role Assignments for User Access Administrator:
Search for User Access Administrator in the list of roles.
Review the list of users currently assigned to the User Access Administrator role.
Limit Assignment to Trusted Users:
Use Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) to assign the User Access Administrator role only to trusted users (e.g., Global Administrator, Privileged Role Administrator).
Remove unnecessary assignments by selecting the user and clicking Remove or change their role if needed (e.g., switch from User Access Administrator to a less privileged role like Security Reader).
Create a Policy to Restrict Role Assignments (Optional): To automatically restrict role assignments, you can configure a conditional access policy to enforce who can assign the User Access Administrator role.
Go to Azure AD > Roles and administrators > User Access Administrator.
Under Assignments, define a group of trusted users who can manage role assignments.
Audit and Monitor Role Assignments:
Set up Azure AD audit logs to capture when the User Access Administrator role is assigned or modified.
Set up alerts in Azure Monitor to notify you if there are unauthorized attempts to assign the role.
Automate Role Assignment Management Using Azure CLI: You can automate the management of the User Access Administrator role with Azure CLI. The following command can be used to view and audit role assignments:
az role assignment list --role "User Access Administrator" --all
To remove a user from the User Access Administrator role using Azure CLI:
az role assignment delete --assignee <user-email-or-object-id> --role "User Access Administrator"
Verify and Test Configuration:
After removing unnecessary role assignments, verify that only authorized users have the User Access Administrator role.
Test the configuration by attempting to assign this role to a user who shouldn't have access. Ensure the action is denied.
Review Role Assignments Regularly:
Set up regular reviews (e.g., quarterly) of the User Access Administrator role assignments to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to manage Azure permissions.
Use Azure AD Access Reviews to periodically review role assignments.
Backout Plan (Automated):
Sign in to Azure portal:
Use an account with Global Administrator or Privileged Role Administrator permissions.
Navigate to Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD):
Go to Azure Active Directory in the Azure portal.
Re-enable Access for User Access Administrator:
In Roles and administrators, find User Access Administrator and add users back as needed by assigning the role back to them.
Click on Add assignments and select the user who needs to have User Access Administrator permissions.
Verify Role Assignment:
After re-assigning the role, confirm that the users now have the User Access Administrator role.
Test the Configuration:
Test by assigning or removing another user’s access to ensure the User Access Administrator role is functioning as intended.