How to stop identity threats across AWS and Azure accounts: A practical guide to ITDR and ISPM

If you’ve spent any time managing cloud security, you already know this: identity is the new perimeter. But here’s the problem — most businesses still rely on periodic access reviews and fragmented tools to protect that perimeter. And when you’re operating across AWS and Azure, the cracks get even wider.

Let’s be honest. Between siloed IAM policies, orphaned service accounts, and token sprawl, attackers don’t need to try too hard. In fact, according to the 2023 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, a whopping 80% of breaches involve credential misuse.

It’s time to rethink how we defend identities — not just at the access approval stage, but continuously. This post breaks down the key areas where identity security often fails (especially across multi-cloud setups) and how to fix them using modern approaches like Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) and Identity Security Posture Management (ISPM).

Step One: Get your network house in order

When your workloads live in both AWS and Azure, network security isn’t just about firewalls. You’re stitching together two platforms that weren’t designed to talk to each other natively.

What good looks like:

• AWS Direct Connect + Azure ExpressRoute for secure, encrypted connections.
• TLS 1.2+ on all service-to-service communication.
• OAuth2 or OpenID Connect (OIDC) instead of static API keys.
• Managed Identities (Azure) and IAM Roles for Service Accounts (AWS) for workload-to-workload authentication.

What goes wrong:

One of the most common missteps we see? Static credentials hard-coded between environments — a golden ticket for attackers if those keys leak (and they often do).

Step Two: Audit relentlessly (but smartly)

You can’t protect what you can’t see. And across cloud accounts, human error, privilege creep, and outdated roles pile up fast.

Best practice:

• AWS IAM Access Analyzer to flag unused permissions.
• Microsoft Entra Access Reviews for group memberships and role activations.
• Regular scans for orphaned accounts and stale privileged roles.
• Centralize audit logs into a SIEM like Microsoft Sentinel or Splunk for a single view.

Why it matters:

Gartner estimates that 70% of cloud security failures will be caused by identity mismanagement by 2025. Manual reviews every quarter won’t cut it anymore.

Step Three: Monitor continuously, not periodically

Legacy IAM tools were built for compliance checklists — not active defense. That’s why most identity-based attacks (like lateral movement using valid accounts) slip right through the cracks.

What Works:

• AWS GuardDuty + Security Hub + Detective for real-time identity threat detection.
• Microsoft Defender for Identity to catch lateral movement inside Azure AD.
• Impossible travel detection, brute force alerts, and token abuse hunting across both clouds.

Miss this, miss the breach:

The Capital One breach is a textbook example of where failure to monitor AssumeRole events let attackers slip past unnoticed. If you’re only checking logs after the fact, you’re already too late.

Step Four: Enrich detection with threat intelligence

The truth is, raw logs aren’t enough. You need context to spot real threats — and avoid drowning in false positives.

How to strengthen your signals:

• Feed MISP, FS-ISAC, or commercial threat intel into your SIEM.
• Enable GuardDuty Threat Lists and Microsoft Threat Intelligence Indicators.

Correlate identity activity with known bad IPs, domains, and behavior patterns.

Step Five: Protect the data, not just the perimeter

Even with perfect access controls, data can leak if you’re not watching where it moves.

Core controls:

• Encryption everywhere (AWS KMS, Azure Key Vault).
• DLP policies with Microsoft Purview and AWS Macie.

Consistent data handling policies across both clouds.

Where most approaches fall short (and how Unosecur fills the gap)

Here’s the hard truth: IAM policies, even when well-written, can’t stop credential misuse on their own. Attackers don’t break in — they log in.

That’s where Unosecur comes in.

Instead of relying on periodic reviews, Unosecur delivers continuous identity security with:

Real-Time Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR): Spot and stop credential misuse, lateral movement, and privilege escalation as it happens — not days later.

Identity Security Posture Management (ISPM): Enforce least privilege at scale. Identify unused permissions. Kill privilege creep before it becomes a problem.

Non-Human Identity (NHI) Protection: Get visibility into API keys, service accounts, and machine identities — and right-size their permissions automatically.

Zero Standing Privilege: Replace always-on admin access with Just-In-Time (JIT) privileged workflows.

Automated Compliance: Get audit-ready reports for SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI-DSS, and more — without last-minute fire drills.

Key risks Unosecur helps mitigate (that IAM alone can’t):

The bottom line:

Protecting identities across AWS and Azure isn’t just about blocking logins or setting up MFA. It’s about watching how identities behave and being ready to respond when they act in ways they shouldn't. 

With Unosecur, you don’t just lock the doors. You stay at the door, watch the cameras, and kick out anyone who’s not supposed to be there.

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