The principle of least privilege limits blast radius. If a user account or API key is compromised, the attacker can do only what that identity was allowed to do.
Common gaps
- Standing admin access in production environments.
- Shared credentials stored in chat or wikis.
- Service accounts with overly broad permissions.
Good habits
- Use role-based access with time-bound elevation workflows.
- Automate access reviews and revoke stale permissions.
- Require just-in-time access for privileged tasks.
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