# Cis Azure Foundations 5.3.1

> Cis Azure Foundations 5.3.1 is an Agent Skill for devops & security published in the CyberStrikeus/CyberStrike repository on GitHub: a SKILL.md instruction file an AI agent can load to do this task.

Ensure Azure admin accounts are not used for daily operations

- Skill name: `cis-azure-foundations-5.3.1`
- Category: [DevOps & Security](https://www.openparable.com/skill/devops-security/1)
- Source: https://github.com/CyberStrikeus/CyberStrike/blob/HEAD/.cyberstrike/skill/CIS_benchmarks/Cloud_Providers/Microsoft_Azure/CIS_Microsoft_Azure_Foundations_Benchmark_v5.0.0/cis-azure-foundations-5.3.1/SKILL.md
- Repository: CyberStrikeus/CyberStrike (1,211 GitHub stars when collected)

## SKILL.md

# Ensure Azure admin accounts are not used for daily operations

## Description

Microsoft Azure admin accounts should not be used for routine, non-administrative tasks.

## Rationale

Using admin accounts for daily operations increases the risk of accidental misconfigurations and security breaches.

## Impact

Minor administrative overhead includes managing separate accounts, enforcing stricter access controls, and potential licensing costs for advanced security features.

## Audit Procedure

### Using Azure Portal

**Monitor:**

1. Go to `Monitor`.
2. Click `Activity log`.
3. Review the activity log and ensure that admin accounts are not being used for daily operations.

**Microsoft Entra ID:**

1. Go to `Microsoft Entra ID`.
2. Under `Monitoring`, click `Sign-in logs`.
3. Review the sign-in logs and ensure that admin accounts are not being accessed more frequently than necessary.

## Expected Result

Admin accounts should show minimal sign-in activity limited to administrative tasks only. Regular daily operations should be performed using non-privileged user accounts.

## Remediation

If admin accounts are being used for daily operations, consider the following:

- Monitor and alert on unusual activity.
- Enforce the principle of least privilege.
- Revoke any unnecessary administrative access.
- Use Conditional Access to limit access to resources.
- Ensure that administrators have separate admin and user accounts.
- Use Microsoft Entra ID Protection to detect, investigate, and remediate identity-based risks.
- Use Privileged Identity Management (PIM) in Microsoft Entra ID to limit standing administrator access to privileged roles, discover who has access, and review privileged access.

## Default Value

There is no default enforcement preventing admin accounts from being used for daily operations.

## References

1. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/security/privileged-access-workstations/critical-impact-accounts

## CIS Controls

| Controls Version | Control                                                                   | IG 1 | IG 2 | IG 3 |
| ---------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
| v8               | 5.4 Restrict Administrator Privileges to Dedicated Administrator Accounts | x    | x    | x    |
| v7               | 4.3 Ensure the Use of Dedicated Administrative Accounts                   | x    | x    | x    |

## Profile

Level 1 | Manual

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Source: https://www.openparable.com/skill/devops-security/cis-azure-foundations-5-3-1 (OpenParable). Cite the canonical URL above.