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Identity and Access Management for Financial Services

Q: How does Privileged Access Management support DORA readiness?

PAM helps support DORA readiness by controlling privileged accounts, reducing shared credential use, enforcing strong authentication, monitoring elevated sessions and producing evidence of privileged activity. It helps show who accessed critical systems, when they accessed them and what actions were taken.

Intragen helps financial services organisations across Europe reduce identity risk, strengthen privileged access controls and evidence IAM maturity under regulatory scrutiny. We help security and IAM teams gain control, confidence and audit-ready evidence across complex environments.

Book a PAM Quick Check Book your IAM Maturity Assessment

Financial services identity and access management planning

Identity risk is now a board, audit and resilience issue

Financial services organisations operate complex identity environments across employees, contractors, partners, administrators, applications and critical systems. As regulatory expectations increase, Identity and Access Management and security teams need to prove that access is controlled, privileged activity is monitored, risks are prioritised and evidence is available when it matters.

82%

Identity-led attacks

82% of detections were malware-free, showing how often adversaries rely on valid credentials, trusted access paths and identity-based techniques.

CrowdStrike 2026 Global Threat Report

29 min

Average breakout time

Average eCrime breakout time fell to 29 minutes, increasing pressure to detect, control and evidence high-risk access quickly.

CrowdStrike 2026 Global Threat Report

High impact

Financial services breach cost

Financial services remains one of the highest-cost sectors for data breaches, with breach impact consistently above the global average.

IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025

What does DORA mean for identity and access?

DORA’s Article 9 sets out ICT security requirements that make identity and access controls central to operational resilience. For financial services organisations, that means being able to demonstrate that access is controlled, privileged activity is governed and evidence exists when supervisors, auditors or internal risk teams ask for it. Read our blog for more on Intragen as a DORA-ready organisation.

Financial entities need to show:

Least privilege and need-to-know
Access rights should be assigned on a least-privilege basis, documented, reviewed and aligned to the user’s role.

Dedicated privileged accounts
Privileged tasks should be performed through dedicated accounts, not the same accounts used for day-to-day work, email or standard business activity.

Strong authentication
Multi-factor authentication should protect privileged access and systems supporting critical or important functions.

Timely revocation
Access should be removed when it is no longer required, supported by joiner-mover-leaver processes that operate reliably in practice.

Operating evidence
The distinction supervisors draw is between having a policy and having a control that demonstrably operates. Session records, access review trails, certification evidence and privileged access reporting help prove that controls are working.

Third-party access is also in scope. DORA makes financial entities accountable for the ICT providers they rely on, which means supplier access, contractor access and outsourced operations need clear ownership, control and evidence. Unsure where your privileged access controls stand against DORA, audit or internal risk expectations? Book a free two-hour PAM Quick Check and get a practical summary of your maturity, key observations and top risks.

The identity risks we see most in financial services

For financial services firms, IAM is no longer just an operational control. It is part of how organisations evidence resilience, manage access risk and demonstrate control to auditors and supervisors. Across banks, insurers, payment providers and fintechs, the same patterns of identity risk often come up in complex financial services environments.

Third-party and contractor access

Outsourced IT, consultants and service providers often hold standing access that nobody clearly owns, reviews or revokes.

Shared and unmanaged privileged accounts

Shared admin credentials across critical platforms create visibility, accountability and audit challenges.

Joiner-mover-leaver failures

Movers accumulate access role after role, while leavers may retain access longer than intended. Access creep remains one of the most common identity governance issues in complex environments.

MFA and conditional access gaps

Critical systems may have inconsistent MFA coverage, exception paths or legacy authentication flows that leave sensitive access exposed.

Non-Human Identity sprawl

Service accounts, API keys, secrets, machine identities and AI agents are increasingly part of the identity estate, but they are often poorly owned, overprivileged or excluded from normal review cycles.

Evidence gaps

Controls may exist, but if teams cannot show access review trails, session records, certification history or privileged account ownership, those controls are harder to defend under scrutiny.

Recommended starting points for financial services organisations

Financial services organisations should usually start with the area where risk and evidence gaps are most concentrated: privileged access, third-party access, identity posture, IAM maturity or Managed Service operations.

If you need to	Start with	CTA
Understand privileged access exposure and audit gaps	PAM Quick Check	Book a PAM Quick Check
Operate PAM without building a full internal function	Managed Privileged Access	Explore Managed Privileged Access
Test whether IAM and PAM controls can be exploited	Identity Assurance Assessment	Book an Identity Assurance briefing
Identify identity sprawl, MFA gaps and risky permissions	ISPM Assessment	Request an ISPM Assessment
Review IAM maturity across governance, access and PAM	IAM Maturity Assessment	Book an IAM Maturity Assessment
Improve IAM operations over time	Managed IAM Services	Explore Managed IAM Services

How Intragen helps financial services organisations strengthen identity security

Privileged Access Management

Protect and monitor elevated access to critical systems, infrastructure and applications.

Explore PAM

Managed Privileged Access

Operate PAM as a Managed Service with specialist support, reporting and ongoing control.

Explore Managed Privileged Access

Identity Governance and Administration

Improve access governance, joiner-mover-leaver processes, certifications and segregation of duties.

Explore IGA

Identity Assurance Assessment

Test whether IAM and PAM controls can be bypassed or exploited in real-world attack scenarios.

Explore Identity Assurance

ISPM Assessment

Identify posture risks such as orphaned accounts, MFA gaps, excessive permissions and configuration weaknesses.

Request an ISPM assessment

Managed IAM Services

Keep IAM platforms supported, optimised and aligned to operational and compliance needs.

Explore Managed IAM Services

Non-Human Identity Security

Gain visibility and control over service accounts, secrets, machine identities and AI agents across cloud, SaaS, DevOps and automation environments.

Explore NHI security

European IAM specialists for regulated organisations

Intragen works with regulated and complex organisations across Europe to deliver IAM advisory, implementation, integration and Managed Services.

As part of Nomios Group, Intragen combines specialist identity expertise with wider cybersecurity capability across European markets.

What does DORA require for Identity and Access Management?

DORA requires financial entities in scope to apply strong ICT security controls, including least-privilege access, dedicated privileged accounts, strong authentication, timely access revocation and operating evidence. For IAM and security teams, this means being able to show access reviews, privileged session records, certification trails and control ownership.

Does DORA or NIS2 apply to my financial services organisation?

DORA applies to a broad range of EU financial entities, including banks, insurers, investment firms and payment providers. It acts as the specialist operational resilience regulation for the sector. Some group companies, suppliers or related entities may also need to consider NIS2 or equivalent local requirements.

How does Privileged Access Management support DORA readiness?

PAM supports DORA readiness by controlling, monitoring and evidencing privileged access to critical systems. PAM helps by reducing shared credential use, enforcing strong authentication, monitoring elevated sessions and producing evidence of privileged activity. It helps show who accessed critical systems, when they accessed them and what actions were taken.

What identity evidence do auditors and supervisors expect to see?

Auditors and supervisors typically expect current, exportable evidence. This may include access policies, access review history, joiner-mover-leaver records, privileged session logs, MFA coverage, account ownership, certification trails and evidence that privileged and non-human accounts are reviewed and controlled.

Can Identity and Access Management be delivered as a Managed Service for financial services?

Yes. Many financial services organisations use a Managed Service for PAM or wider IAM because identity controls require continuous operation, reporting and improvement. Intragen’s Managed Services support platform administration, monitoring, optimisation and evidence production through dedicated identity specialists.

Where should a financial services firm start with identity security?

Start where risk and regulatory exposure are highest: privileged access, third-party access, shared accounts, non-human identities and evidence gaps. A structured assessment, such as Intragen’s PAM Quick Check or IAM Maturity Assessment, gives you a prioritised view before committing to a wider programme.

Facing an audit, a supervisory review or a DORA deadline?

Speak to specialists who work with regulated identity programmes across Europe. Start with a focused assessment and get a clear, prioritised view of where your identity risks, evidence gaps and control weaknesses sit.

Book your free PAM Quick Check Speak to an identity specialist