For protection and privacy reasons, we will not be disclosing the client's name. However, please note that this is a real case scenario
Company Z is one of Africa's leading financial institutions. They offer comprehensive retail, corporate, and investment banking services, supported by a wide branch network and international presence. Known for its strong governance, robust risk management, and early adoption of digital banking, making it a trusted partner for customers, investors, and regulators alike, while maintaining a competitive edge in Nigeria's banking sector.
Company-Z relied heavily on shared administrator accounts across servers, databases, and network devices. This created a big risk:
Credentials could be leaked or misused.
Privileged activity audits were manual, incomplete, and unreliable.
Compliance gaps kept showing up during reviews.
The bank knew it needed better access control—a way to enforce least privilege, ensure traceability, and strengthen audit readiness.
During our initial assessment, we spotted key risks:
Shared admin accounts with static passwords.
No central vault or automated password rotation.
Actions couldn't easily be traced back to individual users.
Audit processes didn't fully cover access governance.
It was clear: the bank needed a structured solution to regain control.
Ethnos Cyber guided Company-Z through a full Privileged Access Management (PAM) deployment using Safeguard:
Conducted a comprehensive audit across servers, databases, and network devices.
Centralized vaulting and automated rotation of privileged credentials.
Session management to monitor and record privileged activity
Role-based access controls to enforce least privilege.
Training workshops for IT and security teams to ensure long-term adoption.
Key Deployments
Safeguard for Privileged Passwords (SPP): Central vault & automatic rotation.
Safeguard for Privileged Sessions (SPS): Recording & monitoring of admin activity.
Safeguard for Privileged Analytics (SPA): Detects abnormal behavior.
RBAC Policies: Ensures least privilege enforcement.
Audit & Reporting Dashboards: Real-time, compliance-ready visibility.
Result At a Glance
Eliminated shared account risks across 500+ privileged users.
Reduced password reset cycles from weeks to minutes.
Achieved full traceability of all privileged actions.
Strengthened compliance for CBN, PCI DSS, and ISO 27001 audits.
Reduced insider threat risks through strict least privilege enforcement.
Recommendations/Next Steps
Extend PAM coverage to cloud environments (e.g., Azure).
Automate ticketing workflows for session approvals.
Conduct quarterly privileged access reviews.
Expand coverage to DevOps secrets and service accounts.
CLIENT TESTIMONIAL
“Before Safeguard, privileged access was a major blind spot. Now, we have visibility, control, and compliance confidence that was impossible with shared admin accounts.”