Automated Dormant Service Account Detection and Disablement
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Large organizations face challenges in efficiently, securely, and uniformly managing internal computer systems' exchange of information with external systems, particularly in identifying and managing dormant service accounts, which pose financial, technical, and security risks due to inefficient manual intervention and inaccurate logging of last use dates.
Innovation Solution
An automated system identifies dormant service accounts by scanning historical activity records and soliciting user feedback, autonomously disabling and decommissioning them to reduce risks and improve network efficiency and security.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual intervention is used to identify and manage dormant service accounts, then user control and verification are maintained, but resource consumption increases and security vulnerabilities persist
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service by implementing automated detection and management of dormant service accounts through machine learning models that continuously monitor account activity, automatically identify dormant accounts based on activity thresholds, and trigger appropriate actions without requiring manual human intervention for each account assessment
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical processes with automated computational systems, substituting human analysts who manually review accounts with machine learning algorithms that automatically analyze account activity patterns, detect dormancy states, and execute management actions, thereby reducing resource consumption while maintaining or improving security
2Measurement precision
If automated scanning of historical activity records is implemented, then identification accuracy of dormant accounts improves, but computational costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies partial action by implementing tiered scanning strategies where not all accounts are scanned with equal depth - active accounts receive minimal scanning while accounts showing reduced activity undergo more thorough historical analysis, and dormant accounts trigger targeted verification only for specific time periods, optimizing computational resource allocation based on account risk profiles
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action through continuous background monitoring that maintains current activity status of all service accounts in real-time, so when dormant accounts need to be identified, the foundational data is already collected and processed, reducing the need for intensive retrospective scanning and lowering overall computational costs
3Reliability
If dormant service accounts are not disabled, then service continuity is maintained, but security vulnerabilities and financial risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements dynamic account management by continuously monitoring service account activity and automatically adjusting account states based on detected dormancy - accounts transition from active to dormant status automatically when inactivity thresholds are met, and can be reactivated when activity resumes, creating a flexible security model that adapts to actual usage patterns rather than relying on static configurations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms where the automated system continuously monitors account activity, detects dormancy conditions, executes disablement actions, and validates the impact on service operations, using this feedback loop to refine detection algorithms and adjust management policies to maintain service continuity while eliminating security vulnerabilities
Data Source
AI summary
Various aspects of the disclosure relate to identifying and disabling dormant service accounts. An account management system automatically analyzes service account activity records to determine whether each service account defined for an enterprise network is in use. Automated monitoring applications may be used for identifying and authenticating events and/or authentications of service accounts across an enterprise network. When particular service accounts are identified as being potentially dormant, based on an identified date of last use meeting a threshold condition, the associated service accounts are flagged as being dormant. Setting an account as being dormant triggers solicitation of feedback confirming the dormant setting, which causes disablement of the service account. The account management system triggers decommissioning of the dormant service accounts upon expiration of a disablement threshold.