How to Build a Secure Vendor Account Management Process
Centralizing vendor account management is essential for maintaining control and minimizing risk. When vendor accounts are created using personal emails or authentication methods tied to individual employees, it leads to fragmented ownership and increases the chances of lockouts when someone leaves the company. By using a company-controlled process such as registering accounts with a shared inbox like vendors@yourcompany.com you ensure that access remains within the organization. This also standardizes how accounts are created, stored, and recovered, giving IT or management visibility into who controls what.
In addition to centralization, implementing role-based access is critical. Rather than assigning accounts to individuals, assign access based on job functions like “Marketing Manager” or “IT Admin.” This maintains continuity as staff roles change and avoids the risk of losing control over vendor relationships. Pair this with a business-grade password manager to securely store and share credentials, and conduct regular audits to track access and update MFA methods. Make it part of your offboarding process to immediately revoke vendor access when employees depart.
This along with an up-to-date Business Continuity Plan, Disaster Recovery Plan, and Cyber Incident Response Plan will help ensure your business operations run efficiently and remain resilient in the face of disruptions.
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