Secure Active Directory with UserLock IAM: Product Showcase

For organizations relying on Microsoft Active Directory, securing network access without a costly and disruptive identity overhaul is a top priority. UserLock provides a modern identity and access management (IAM) layer specifically designed for AD environments, delivering essential security controls like granular multi-factor authentication (MFA), contextual access rules, and real-time session oversight. This approach allows IT teams to significantly strengthen their security posture and meet compliance requirements while keeping their core identity infrastructure intact.

A major challenge for many AD administrators is a lack of clear, actionable visibility. Sifting through native event logs or relying on broad SIEM alerts often fails to provide the session-level detail needed for effective daily management. UserLock addresses this by aggregating all AD entities, users, machines, groups, and organizational units, into intuitive dashboards. This gives teams immediate insight into what assets they have, which policies are applied, and where potential security gaps exist, enabling consistent policy enforcement and quicker identification of issues.

Visibility alone isn’t sufficient; robust authentication and access control are fundamental. UserLock operates at the AD authentication layer, intercepting logon requests to verify identities and enforce policies. This unique position allows it to secure a wide range of access scenarios, from local Windows logons and Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to VPN and SaaS applications, without needing to migrate or duplicate identities to a cloud service. Policies can be easily applied to existing AD users, groups, or OUs.

The solution offers highly granular MFA enforcement. IT administrators can dictate when a second authentication factor is required based on specific risk contexts, such as the connection type (on or off the local network) or the session type (workstation, VPN, SaaS). Beyond MFA, powerful contextual access controls allow access to be restricted by factors like device, geographic location, IP address, time of day, and concurrent session limits. These invisible-to-the-user controls proactively shrink the attack surface by locking down the exact avenues attackers commonly exploit. Critically, as an agent-based solution, UserLock functions fully in air-gapped or offline environments, and all identity data remains securely on-premises.

Once access is granted, continuous monitoring becomes vital. UserLock provides real-time and historical visibility into all network and SaaS access, an area where many hybrid environments struggle. Teams can see live details on every logon, including who is connected, their location, device, and session type. The system highlights after-hours activity, suspicious concurrent logons that may indicate credential theft, and failed access attempts with full context. Custom alerts can be configured, and administrators can remotely block users or interact with active sessions, enabling them to stop potential threats before they cause damage. Customizable views and reports allow different team members to focus on the specific data most relevant to their responsibilities.

Preparing for compliance audits is often a time-consuming burden. UserLock simplifies this process with comprehensive, audit-ready reporting. It maintains a complete, searchable record of all identity-related events, including successful and failed logons, user session histories, MFA events, and administrator actions. Reports can be filtered, exported, or scheduled automatically, providing auditors with a clear, identity-centric trail that proves required policies are not only in place but are functioning correctly.

The prevailing industry narrative often pushes for a full migration to cloud-based identity, but this is not feasible or desirable for every organization due to regulatory, cost, or complexity concerns. UserLock offers a pragmatic alternative: fortify the existing, trusted AD foundation with the advanced security layers it lacks. This strategy achieves a secure and compliant state much faster and with far less disruption than a full identity replacement. Built with over two decades of experience, UserLock is designed for the operational realities of on-premises and hybrid AD setups, giving IT teams the granular controls and session-based management they need to define and enforce what “secure enough” means for their unique environment.

(Source: HelpNet Security)