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Active Directory password policy enforcement tool

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Why your organization is at risk without a password policy enforcement tool

Passwords used by employees play a critical role in an organization’s data security. However, poor password hygiene remains a major risk, as employees often set weak or commonly used passwords. Without a strong password policy and effective password policy enforcement, organizations relying on native tools like Windows Active Directory Group Policies may face serious security threats. Implementing a password policy is essential to safeguard sensitive data.

Complexity loopholes in Active Directory password policies

What are the Active Directory password policy requirements?

  • Minimum password length
  • Minimum password age
  • Maximum password age
  • Password complexity requirements
  • Password history enforcement
  • Reversible encryption for storing passwords

Why aren't Active Directory password policies enough?

  • A one-size-fits-all Active Directory password policy does not exist. Password policies should be customizable to suit different hierarchies, geographical regions, and departments within an organization. However, an Active Directory password policy lacks this flexibility, as it cannot be applied to OUs.
  • When admins reset passwords using the Active Directory Users and Computers (ADUC) console, the native password policy settings cannot be enforced.
  • The ability to prevent consecutive repetition of the same character does not exist within the native password policy settings.
  • Dictionary words, patterns, and palindromes cannot be restricted while configuring a password policy natively.
  • The native password policy settings cannot be configured to define the number of characters required from specific character types.
  • Due to their limited password and account lockout settings, native policies cannot meet various compliance regulations, such as NIST, PCI DSS, HIPAA, and GDPR password standards.
  • An Active Directory password policy cannot prevent sophisticated, modern password attacks, like dictionary and brute-force attacks.
  • On the whole, it is challenging for admins to keep tracking the assigned password policies in a particular domain.

Enforce a robust password policy and restrict common words from user passwords

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Effective password policy enforcement with ADSelfService Plus

ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus' Password Policy Enforcer overcomes the limitations of a native Active Directory password policy by enabling organizations to implement a custom and strong password policy that seamlessly integrates with the existing Active Directory ones. It strengthens Active Directory passwords to ensure that organizational resources remain protected against various cyberthreats.

How to strengthen an Active Directory password policy with ADSelfService Plus' Password Policy Enforcer

The Password Policy Enforcer in ADSelfService Plus can be set to enforce the following password policy requirements.

  • Restrict characters
  • Restrict repetition
  • Restrict pattern
  • Restrict
    length
  • Restrict compromised
    passwords

Restrict characters: This section of the Password Policy Enforcer includes mandating the number of special, numeric, and Unicode characters. You can also set the type of character that the password should start with.

 
 

Configure the inclusion of alpha-numeric characters in passwords.

An image showing the restrict character settings within the Password Policy Enforcer feature in ADSelfService Plus
Figure 1: Restrict password characters using ADSelfService Plus.

Restrict repetition: This section of the Password Policy Enforcer allows you to enforce password history and restrict the use of consecutive characters from usernames or previous passwords. Consecutive repetition of the same character can also be restricted.

 
 

Restrict users from reusing their previous passwords during password creation.

An image showing the restrict repetition settings within the Password Policy Enforcer feature in ADSelfService Plus
Figure 2: Restrict password repetition using ADSelfService Plus.

Restrict pattern: This section of the Password Policy Enforcer enables you to restrict custom dictionary words, patterns, and palindromes that might be commonly used.

 
 

Restrict users from using common patterns, dictionary words, and palindromes in their passwords.

An image showing the restrict pattern settings within the Password Policy Enforcer feature in ADSelfService Plus
Figure 3: Restrict password patterns using ADSelfService Plus.

Restrict length: This section of the Password Policy Enforcer lets you set both a minimum and maximum number of characters for the password.

 
 

Configure the minimum and maximum password length to satisfy the NIST password guidelines.

An image showing the restrict length settings within the Password Policy Enforcer feature in ADSelfService Plus
Figure 4: Restrict password length using ADSelfService Plus.

Restrict compromised passwords: ADSelfService Plus lets you integrate with the Have I been Pwned service, which bans the use of passwords involved in previous hacks and prevents credential stuffing attacks.

An image showing that ADSelfService Plus can prevent users from setting breached passwords through its integration with Have I Been Pwned
Figure 5: Restrict users from using breached passwords using ADSelfService Plus' Have I Been Pwned integration.
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Benefits of implementing password policies using ADSelfService Plus

  • Help your users set strong passwords: Display password policy requirements on the reset and change password pages so that users are prompted to set strong passwords. Allow users to see the password strength live on the password change or reset screen by enabling the Password Strength Analyzer.
  • Built-in password reports: Receive out-of-the-box reports that give IT admins a holistic view of users' password expiration and account lockout status, enrollment data, and self-service actions in all the connected domains.
  • Encourage passphrases: Enable users to create long and secure passphrases by overriding the password policy rules if the password is beyond a specific length.
  • Enforce password policies universally: Enforce your policy for password changes from the Ctrl+Alt+Del screen and during ADUC password resets.
  • Implement granular password policies: Set password policies for OUs and groups separate from the domain password policy to match the level of sensitive resources specific users need access to.
  • Satisfy regulatory compliance standards: Create password policies that comply with the NIST's Cybersecurity Framework, HIPAA, CJIS, the NIS2 Directive, and the GDPR.

Enhance your organization's password policy and keep password attacks at bay

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Highlights of ADSelfService Plus

Password self-service  

Unburden Active Directory users from lengthy help desk calls by empowering them with self-service password reset and account unlock capabilities.

One identity with single sign-on  

Get seamless, one-click access to more than 100 cloud applications. With enterprise single sign-on, users can access all their cloud applications using their Active Directory credentials.

Password and account expiry notifications  

Notify Active Directory users of their impending password and account expiry via email and SMS notifications.

Password synchronization  

Synchronize Active Directory user passwords and account changes across multiple systems automatically, including Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and IBM iSeries.

Password Policy Enforcer  

Strong passwords resist various hacking threats. Compel Active Directory users to create compliant passwords by displaying password complexity requirements.

Directory self-update   and corporate search  

Enable Active Directory users to update their latest information by themselves. Quick search features help admins scout for information on peers using search keys like contact numbers.

FAQ

A password policy is a set of rules created and enforced to strengthen user passwords. A password that satisfies and enforces all the rules of a password policy helps better secure the underlying data against potential password attacks. A password policy includes rules that specify minimum password length, maximum password age, password history requirements, and password complexity details.

A dictionary attack involves a threat actor trying to hack into a user account by repeatedly trying various combinations of dictionary words. Often, the words used are not necessarily dictionary words but predictable password choices, like names, birth places, or pet's names, which users normally tend to use in their passwords. For this reason, users are advised to avoid such words while setting passwords.

In a brute-force attack, all possible combinations of characters are systematically tried. In contrast, a dictionary attack uses a predefined list of commonly used phrases or variations of those phrases to attempt to gain unauthorized access. Dictionary attacks are generally faster but rely on the assumption that the correct password is among the entries in the dictionary list.

Active Directory password complexity requirements are settings that mandate that users include certain special characters, like uppercase, lowercase, or non-alphanumeric characters, and to avoid using their usernames in their passwords. Users have chosen strong passwords when the complexity requirements of the enforced domain password policy are met.

Securing a user account or data endpoint with only a password makes it most vulnerable to the password attacks of today. Deploying multi-factor authentication mechanisms are a good practice to render compromised credentials useless to hackers. Strong authentication mechanisms like biometrics have made passwordless user authentication possible.

The default Active Directory domain password policy defines configurable rules for user account password creation. This password policy is only applicable to the entire domain to which it is linked, and it cannot be customized for a specific set of users, groups, or OUs. Active Directory's FGPP, on the other hand, overcomes this drawback and allows password policies to be tailored to different users and groups within the domain.

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