Why One Identity Safeguard Just Became a Visionary in Privileged Access Management

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Gartner has named One Identity Safeguard a Visionary in the 2025 Magic Quadrant for Privileged Access Management (PAM), a recognition that highlights its innovative roadmap, strong execution potential, and growing influence in zero trust security strategies. This article unpacks what that Visionary status really means, how Safeguard is reshaping privileged access security with modern capabilities like just-in-time access and advanced session monitoring, why this matters for enterprises facing relentless identity-based attacks, and what security teams should consider next as they modernize their PAM programs.

One Identity Safeguard being named a Visionary in the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Privileged Access Management (PAM) marks a significant milestone in the evolution of identity-centric security. In an environment where attackers increasingly target admin, root, and service accounts, this recognition signals that Safeguard is not only keeping pace with market leaders, but also shaping the future of how privileged access is discovered, governed, and monitored.

The announcement from Aliso Viejo, CA, on November 27, 2025, underscores how rapidly PAM has moved from a “nice to have” tool to a foundational layer of cyber-resilience. Visionary vendors in Gartner’s framework are typically those that introduce differentiated capabilities, align with emerging architectures such as zero trust and identity security platforms, and demonstrate a forward-looking product strategy that resonates with complex, global enterprises.

One Identity Safeguard promotional graphic illustrating modern privileged access security
Figure 1: One Identity Safeguard promotional visual, highlighting modern privileged access controls. Source: NextBigFuture / One Identity press materials.

Mission Overview: What Privileged Access Management Protects

Privileged Access Management is the discipline, technology, and process set that safeguards high-impact accounts and credentials—those that can change configurations, access sensitive data at scale, or disrupt critical business operations. These include:

  • Administrator accounts on servers, network devices, and SaaS platforms
  • Database and application service accounts
  • Cloud console roles (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP administrative roles)
  • Infrastructure-as-code and CI/CD pipeline credentials
  • Emergency “break glass” accounts used during incidents

The mission of a modern PAM solution like One Identity Safeguard is to make those high-value accounts:

  1. Visible – automatically discovered across on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments.
  2. Controlled – protected with strong authentication, approvals, and policy-based access.
  3. Ephemeral – issued only when needed (just-in-time) and revoked immediately afterward.
  4. Auditable – thoroughly recorded, monitored, and analyzed for suspicious activity.
“Compromise of privileged accounts often results in full domain compromise.” — U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)

As enterprises adopt zero trust architectures and identity-first security, PAM moves from a niche security tool to a strategic control layer that underpins compliance, ransomware defense, and operational resilience.


Technology: How One Identity Safeguard Delivers Modern PAM

One Identity Safeguard is designed as an integrated PAM platform that can plug into broader identity and access management (IAM) ecosystems. While specific 2025 release notes evolve continuously, Safeguard’s core technology pillars typically include:

1. Secure Credential Vaulting and Rotation

At the heart of Safeguard is a hardened, encrypted credentials vault. Administrative passwords, SSH keys, API tokens, and other secrets are stored centrally, with robust access controls and tamper-proof logging.

  • Automated password rotation on check-in or on schedule
  • API-based access for integration with DevOps pipelines and ITSM tools
  • Granular entitlements restricting who can request which credentials

2. Session Brokering and Monitoring

Instead of distributing raw credentials, Safeguard can broker sessions so that users never see the underlying password or key. This minimizes credential sprawl while providing complete oversight.

  • Secure RDP and SSH proxies with keystroke and command logging
  • Live session monitoring and real-time termination of risky actions
  • Playback features for forensics and compliance investigations

3. Just-in-Time (JIT) and Just-Enough-Privilege (JEP)

Aligning with zero trust principles, Safeguard increasingly emphasizes short-lived, scoped access:

  • Ephemeral elevation to admin roles only for the duration of a task
  • Policy-driven approval workflows tied to change tickets
  • Dynamic privilege elevation in Windows, Linux, and cloud environments

4. Identity-Centric Integration

A key reason Gartner views vendors as Visionaries is their platform strategy. One Identity integrates PAM with:

  • Directory services and identity governance for end-to-end lifecycle control
  • Multi-factor authentication (MFA) and risk-based access
  • SIEM and SOAR platforms for automated incident response
Security operations team monitoring privileged access sessions in a control room
Figure 2: Security operations analysts monitoring privileged sessions and alerts. Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko via Pexels (royalty-free).

Scientific Significance: Why PAM Matters in Modern Cybersecurity

While PAM is often seen as an operational control, its impact is grounded in security science, risk modeling, and adversary simulation. Research and incident analyses consistently show that:

  • Most large-scale breaches involve some form of privileged escalation.
  • Attackers exploit misconfigurations, unmanaged identities, and stale credentials.
  • Reducing privileged access “standing time” drastically lowers breach blast radius.

From a risk management perspective, PAM operates as a high-leverage control because it intersects:

  1. Attack surface reduction – fewer always-on admin accounts and exposed secrets.
  2. Detection and response – rich telemetry from high-value sessions.
  3. Compliance – demonstrable controls for regulations like SOX, HIPAA, PCI DSS, and ISO 27001.
“Identity is the new security perimeter. Protecting privileged identities is central to defending modern enterprises.” — Microsoft Security Research

One Identity Safeguard’s Visionary position reflects its alignment with this identity-centric, telemetry-rich, zero trust paradigm. Its capabilities support:

  • Advanced analytics on privileged behavior (e.g., unusual login times or commands)
  • Integration with threat intelligence and anomaly detection engines
  • Evidence-based policy tuning based on real-world usage patterns
Data visualization of cybersecurity analytics and privileged access patterns
Figure 3: Security analytics dashboards help correlate privileged access with risk indicators. Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko via Pexels (royalty-free).

Milestones: Positioning in the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant

Gartner’s Magic Quadrant evaluates vendors along two axes: Completeness of Vision and Ability to Execute. Being placed in the Visionary quadrant indicates that One Identity Safeguard:

  • Demonstrates a strong understanding of future PAM requirements, especially in cloud-native and hybrid environments.
  • Invests in innovation such as JIT access, secrets management, and broad IAM integration.
  • Addresses complex use cases like DevOps, OT/ICS environments, and large-scale regulatory compliance.

Although full report details are behind Gartner’s paywall, organizations can typically request a complimentary copy via vendor websites or analyst briefings. This milestone follows years of growing adoption of One Identity’s broader portfolio, including identity governance and administration (IGA) and access management solutions.

“Recognition as a Visionary is less about where you are today and more about the angle of ascent—your trajectory toward solving tomorrow’s problems.”

For CISOs and security architects, the Visionary label is a signal to:

  1. Shortlist Safeguard for evaluations alongside Leaders and Challengers.
  2. Examine how its roadmap fits with your cloud, IAM, and DevSecOps strategies.
  3. Assess whether its integration capabilities reduce complexity compared to point solutions.
CISO and security leadership team reviewing technology strategy
Figure 4: Security and technology leaders aligning PAM strategy with business and cloud initiatives. Photo by Anna Shvets via Pexels (royalty-free).

Challenges: What Enterprises Still Need to Overcome

Even with a Visionary solution, PAM programs face non-trivial challenges. Technology is only one part of the equation; process, culture, and legacy constraints can derail deployments.

Technical and Architectural Challenges

  • Legacy systems that lack modern authentication hooks or APIs.
  • Hybrid complexity across data centers, multiple clouds, and edge environments.
  • Service accounts hard-coded in scripts and applications that are difficult to rotate.

Organizational and Process Challenges

  • Resistance from admins worried about productivity or loss of direct control.
  • Incomplete asset and identity inventories, making discovery and classification difficult.
  • Insufficient training and communication around new workflows and approval processes.

One Identity Safeguard and comparable platforms can mitigate these issues with features such as:

  • Agentless session brokering to avoid deep changes on legacy systems.
  • Discovery tools for scanning networks and directories for unmanaged privileged accounts.
  • REST APIs and integrations with tools like ServiceNow, Jira, or Splunk.

However, successful programs typically:

  1. Start with a pilot scope (e.g., domain admins and critical databases) before scaling out.
  2. Align PAM controls with ITIL/change management and incident response playbooks.
  3. Use metrics such as number of unmanaged privileged accounts, mean time to approve access, and password rotation coverage to track progress.

Recommended Tooling and Learning Resources

Building a mature PAM capability goes beyond deploying a single platform. It requires skills development, process documentation, and careful design. The following resources can support teams working with One Identity Safeguard or comparable technologies.

Professional Reading and White Papers

Hands-On Learning and Labs

Useful Hardware for a Home or Lab Environment (Affiliate)

For building a small test lab or cyber range to experiment with PAM workflows, many security practitioners use compact yet powerful systems:


Conclusion: What One Identity Safeguard’s Visionary Status Means for You

One Identity Safeguard’s recognition as a Visionary in the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for PAM is more than a marketing milestone; it is a signal that its strategy aligns with the future of identity-centric security. For organizations under pressure from regulators, board-level scrutiny, and increasingly sophisticated attackers, modern PAM is no longer optional.

As you evaluate PAM solutions and roadmaps, consider the following actions:

  1. Map all privileged accounts and secrets across your hybrid environment.
  2. Prioritize high-impact systems and identities for vaulting and session control.
  3. Adopt just-in-time and just-enough-privilege wherever technically feasible.
  4. Integrate PAM telemetry into your SIEM/SOAR stack for better detection and response.
  5. Continuously refine policies based on real-world behavior and emerging threats.

Visionary vendors like One Identity can accelerate this journey by offering integrated, identity-first approaches that bridge traditional infrastructure, modern cloud, and DevOps environments. The organizations that move quickly on PAM modernization will be better positioned to withstand the next generation of identity-based attacks.


Additional Considerations for a Future-Proof PAM Strategy

To maximize long-term value from a platform like One Identity Safeguard, it is worth planning for evolving requirements:

  • Machine identities and APIs – As machine-to-machine traffic grows, ensure your PAM covers certificates, tokens, and non-human identities.
  • Operational technology (OT) and ICS – Critical infrastructure operators should consider how privileged control systems accounts are managed and monitored.
  • AI and automation – Expect increased use of AI for anomaly detection in privileged sessions and for automated policy recommendations.
  • Regulatory evolution – Keep an eye on new cyber regulations (e.g., EU NIS2, sectoral rules) that may codify PAM expectations.

Investing time in architecture, role design, and governance at the outset will dramatically improve your chances of realizing the full benefits of a Visionary-class PAM platform and avoiding “tool shelfware” scenarios.


References / Sources

Continue Reading at Source : Next Big Future
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