1. Planning.

• Assessment
  Start by identifying the people who require access, the resources they require, and why they need it. Review existing access rights and assess if they can be minimized or deleted. Employ an entitlement discovery tool for better transparency.
• Policy development
  Create clear policies for granting and revoking access. Include instructions about who can request access, under which situations, and how long the access should last. Particularly for privileged roles, establish time-bound parameters.
• Source of truth
  Integrate your JIT access with an Identity Provider (e.g., Okta, Azure AD, Google Workspace, OneLogin). This will serve as the reliable source for identities. Transitioning from shared accounts to individual identities will result in improved authorization control and accurate auditing.

2. Execution.

• Self-serve access requests
  Simplify the procedure by enabling users to request access through the system rather than through individuals. By integrating with IM platforms like Slack or MS Teams, you can increase adoption rates. Ensure requests detail who is requesting, the necessary service/resource/role, duration, and reason.

• Approval process
  JIT access allows organizations to command approvals to individuals with business context. Often, resource owners and business unit supervisors have a better understanding than IT support. Expedite responses by using messaging platforms, providing approvers with all the necessary details for an informed decision.

• Conditional approval workflows
  Incorporate predefined policies into workflows that determine the accessibility of resources. Insert them into workflows that specify who can access what and in which conditions. This can be achieved by assigning if-then conditions. IF group “X” request access to “Y”, get approval from “Z” and inform “M”.

• Integrations
  Consider incorporating JITA into other IT and security systems for added flexibility; Couple with IT ticketing systems for automated access depending on the ticket status. Connect with data classification systems to adjust policies based on data sensitivity. The ability to tag and bundle resources together can streamline this process. Integrate with on-call software for automated approvals during emergencies. Use training systems to allow access according to training completion.
• Automated provisioning and depovisioning
  Accumulate a comprehensive understanding of Buildkite to seamlessly grant and remove access within the service. JIT Access’s success hinges on this as it reduces the dependency on waiting for people to find time, allowing for automated deprovisioning of access. Ideally, all permissions would be managed within one place, eliminating the need to construct or maintain a separate environment for each application.
• Access methods
  For Buildkite JIT Access, APIs are typically preferred due to their adaptability and real-time abilities. However, it may require combining, such as using SAML for authentication, SCIM for user provisioning, and APIs for precise access control decisions.

3. Maintenance.

• Regular audits
  Regularly examine access logs to verify that JIT access is functioning correctly. Keep an eye out for unusual patterns or behavior either directly or by feeding the logs into your SIEM. You can automate the user access review process to hasten evidence gathering and delegate reviewers, ensuring your system conforms with applicable industry regulations or standards.
• User training
  Inform users, particularly privileged users, about the significance of least privilege and JIT Access and how they function. Users should be aware of how to request access when needed.
• Feedback loop
  Continually re-evaluate your JIT access procedures and take feedback from users and IT staff on areas of improvement. Following this structured approach, you can successfully implement a robust JIT Access system for Buildkite.