Escalating User Privileges in Cloud Computing Environments

One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying software that is operable when executed to:

• provide a computing environment comprising a plurality of user accounts, wherein each of the user accounts is assigned specified privileges to execute particular commands or programs;
• receive a request to temporarily escalate privileges for one of the user accounts during a specified duration, wherein the request comprises an identifier of the user account, requested privileges, and the specified duration;
• grant the requested privileges for the specified duration in conjunction with specific restrictions on one or more prohibited activities that are normally permitted for user accounts with the requested privileges;
• monitor, during the specified duration, for any indication that the user account has attempted a prohibited activity;
• detect an indication that the user account attempted one of the prohibited activities;
• and
• initiate an automated remediation corresponding to the indication.

A system comprising:

• one or more processors;
• and a non-transitory memory coupled to the processors comprising instructions executable by the processors, the processors operable when executing the instructions to:
• provide a computing environment comprising a plurality of user accounts, wherein each of the user accounts is assigned specified privileges to execute particular commands or programs;
• receive a request to temporarily escalate privileges for one of the user accounts during a specified duration, wherein the request comprises an identifier of the user account, requested privileges, and the specified duration;
• grant the requested privileges for the specified duration in conjunction with specific restrictions on one or more prohibited activities that are normally permitted for user accounts with the requested privileges;
• monitor, during the specified duration, for any indication that the user account has attempted a prohibited activity;
• detect an indication that the user account attempted one of the prohibited activities;
• and
• initiate an automated remediation corresponding to the indication.