Does Accounts Discovery require an account to log in to the domain?

Accounts Discovery is a process within the Defender Privileged Access Management (PAM) framework that is designed to identify and enumerate accounts within a domain. For this process to be effective, it typically requires authentication to access the domain's resources securely. This means that an account is necessary to perform logins and authenticate during the discovery phase.

Accessing domain data and leveraging permissions associated with an authenticated account enables the tool to gather comprehensive information about user accounts, their privileges, and security configurations. Without a valid account, the discovery process would be limited and unable to retrieve crucial data that may affect security postures, such as identifying users with excessive privileges or discovering orphaned accounts.

In cases where an account is not used, the process may not be able to provide the depth of information required to assess all accounts properly, which is essential for maintaining a secure environment. Additionally, option variations like scanning alone or depending on configurations imply different operational capabilities that could diminish the effectiveness of the Accounts Discovery initiative; however, all point to the necessity of an authenticated session for thorough analysis.