1. Planning.

• Assessment
  Start by identifying who needs access, the required resources, and the reason. Review existing access privileges and analyze if they can be reduced or removed. Use an entitlement discovery tool for better visibility.
• Policy development
  Create clear rules for both granting and removing access. Detail guidelines about who can ask for access, under what circumstances, and for what duration. Specifically for privileged roles, establish time-bound parameters.
• Source of truth
  Sync your JIT access system with an Identity Provider (e.g., Okta, Google Workspace, Azure AD, OneLogin). This will serve as the ultimate source for identities. The de/escalation of individual identities rather than shared accounts will aid in better authorization management and audit precision.

2. Execution.

• Self-serve access requests
  Streamline the process by having users request access via the system, rather than through people. Boost adoption rates by integrating with IM platforms such as Slack or MS Teams. Make sure requests detail who's asking, the required service/resource/role, duration, and purpose.

• Approval process
  JIT access allows organizations to delegate approval permissions to those with business understanding. Resource owners and business unit managers often have a better grasp of the situation than IT support. Use messaging platforms for swift responses, giving approvers all vital information for an informed decision.

• Conditional approval workflows
  Infuse your established policies into workflows that dictate access permissions. Incorporate them into workflows that stipulate who can access what, and under which conditions. An effective method is by establishing if-then conditions. IF identity group “X” asks for access to “Y”, seek approval from “Z” and notify “M”.

• Integrations
  Consider connecting JITA with other IT and security systems for increased adaptability; Integrate with IT ticketing systems for automated access depending on ticket status. Link with data classification systems to amend policies based on data sensitivity. Ideally, you'll have the capacity to tag resources and group them together to streamline this procedure. Collaborate with on-call schedule software for automated approvals during emergencies. Use training systems to give access based on training completion.
• Automated provisioning and depovisioning
  Understand Intercom well to successfully grant and revoke refined access automatically within the service. This is crucial for JIT Access because it decreases the dependency on people's availability. It enables automated revocation of access, pivotal to JIT access and the principle of least privilege access (POLP). Ideally, all permissions would be managed in one place, eliminating the need to construct or manage an environment for each application in your organization.
• Access methods
  For Intercom JIT Access, APIs are desirable given their adaptability and real-time operations. However, a mix may be needed. For example, using SAML for verification, SCIM for user allocation, and APIs for precise access control decisions.

3. Maintenance.

• Regular audits
  Regularly inspect access logs to ensure that JIT access is functioning as anticipated. Identify any unusual patterns or behaviors either directly or by integrating the logs into your SIEM. The user access review process can be automated to speed up evidence collection, delegate reviewers, and ensure your system adheres to relevant industry regulations or standards.
• User instruction
  Educate users, particularly privileged users, about the significance of least privilege, JIT Access and its operation. Make sure users are aware how to request access when required.
• Feedback loop
  Regularly review your JIT access methods. Obtain feedback from users and IT staff to identify areas for improvement.

By adopting this systematic approach, you'll be able to effectively implement a robust Just-in-Time Access system for Intercom.