Salesforce is an incredibly powerful platform that companies are using to house even more customer data and business processes, but that means it also comes with security challenges — especially when it comes to privileged access management. If privileged users are given excessive permissions, the risk of security breaches and privileged access abuse increases significantly.
The principle of least privilege (PoLP) is a key security control that ensures users, applications, and systems only have the minimum level of access required to perform their job functions.
This post explores privileged access management in Salesforce orgs, how PoLP differs from Zero Trust, and how Salesforce developers and admins can implement it effectively by enforcing role-based access control (RBAC) — especially in DevSecOps workflows with Gearset.
What is the principle of least privilege?
The principle of least privilege is a security model that ensures users, processes, and applications are only given the minimum level of user permissions needed for their specific tasks and role.
The PoLP is essential for Salesforce data security, as it significantly reduces the risk of data breaches by limiting access to sensitive information. PoLP helps prevent privileged access abuse and minimizes security risks by restricting over-privileged users, reducing the potential impact of insider threats or compromised accounts. Plus, enforcing PoLP supports compliance with industry security frameworks such as OWASP Top 10, GDPR, and HIPAA, helping organizations meet regulatory requirements while strengthening Salesforce security.
For example, a Salesforce developer working on a new feature should have access to sandbox environments but not customer data in production. Similarly, an HR user may need access to employee records but should not have privileged access to Salesforce Shield encryption settings.
How are PoLP and Zero Trust different?
While both PoLP and Zero Trust are security principles that aim to limit access and reduce information security and risks, they have different focuses:
- PoLP. Restricts access based on what is needed to carry out their job function.
- Zero Trust. Assumes that no access should be granted by default and requires continuous identity verification.
Think of PoLP as limiting access internally within a Salesforce org using role-based access control (RBAC), while Zero Trust would require users to verify their identity with every attempt to access the org. Both techniques are useful — but in Salesforce implementations the principle of least privilege is more practical for day-to-day use by your end users.
Privileged access management in Salesforce
Privileged users are those who have elevated access to critical systems, making them high-value targets for cyberattacks. Without proper access controls, these accounts can become a major vulnerability. Whether you’re applying PoLP or Zero Trust, these are key users to keep in mind when implementing and reviewing security measures.
Who are privileged users in a Salesforce org?
- System Administrators. Have full control over Salesforce orgs.
- Developers. Can modify metadata, potentially creating security gaps.
- Integration Users. Often hold privileged user access for third-party applications.
- Release Managers. Manage deployments but should not have admin privileges.
Security risks of privileged access
Unmonitored privileged users pose a significant security risk, as compromised credentials can lead to security breaches and unauthorized elevated access to sensitive data. Forgotten privileged accounts, especially those belonging to former employees or outdated integrations, create hidden backdoors that attackers can exploit. The use of shared credentials further complicates privileged access management, making it difficult to enforce accountability, leading to compliance failures and auditability issues.
Additionally, phishing and social engineering attacks often target privileged users, tricking them into revealing login credentials that allow attackers to gain access to critical systems. Without proper oversight, over-privileged users can introduce unauthorized access, significantly increasing the likelihood of data breaches and regulatory violations.
How to implement the principle of least privilege in Salesforce
Role-Based access control (RBAC) is a structured way to control access in a Salesforce org that combines user profiles, permission sets, and the role hierarchy to enforce access controls effectively based on a user’s role requirements.
An RBAC approach to security will involve different aspects of the Salesforce security model — these are the core metadata types you’ll need to check:
- Profiles. Define the baseline user account permissions for different teams (e.g., Sales, Support).
- Permission Sets. Grant additional user access control without modifying profiles.
- Permission Set Groups. Bundle multiple permission sets for easier management.
- Role Hierarchy. Control record-level access based on organizational structure.
- Sharing Rules & Sharing Sets. Extend access based on business needs while maintaining security.
By combining these access controls, you can restrict access to customer data while still enabling users to perform their tasks efficiently.
Profiles: The foundation of user access
Profiles define user permissions and are assigned to every Salesforce user account. A profile controls access to objects, fields, and system-level settings. However, profiles are static and should not be used to fine-tune individual permissions.
Best practices for profiles:
- Use profiles as a baseline, then grant additional permissions using permission sets.
- Assign the minimum level of access necessary for a role.
- Avoid assigning overly permissive profiles like System Administrator unless absolutely necessary.
Permission sets and permission set groups: Adding flexibility
Since profiles are rigid, permission sets provide a more flexible way to control access. Instead of modifying a user’s profile, you can assign permission sets to grant access to specific features, objects, or fields when needed for a specific role.
Permission Set Groups allow multiple permission sets to be bundled together, making it easier to manage permissions for complex roles while maintaining PoLP.
Best practices for permission sets:
- Assign permission sets based on job functions to ensure users only get the access they truly need.
- Group related permission sets into permission set groups for easier assignment and management.
- Avoid stacking too many permission sets on users, as it can lead to excessive privileges over time.
- Use expiration dates on permission sets for temporary access rather than granting indefinite permissions.
Role hierarchy: Controlling data visibility
The role hierarchy controls record access based on organizational structure. Users higher in the hierarchy can see records owned by users below them, but roles should not be used to assign object- or field-level permissions.
Best practices for role hierarchy:
- Align roles with business structure, not access needs.
- Avoid excessive privileged user access by keeping the hierarchy simple.
- Use sharing rules for exceptions instead of modifying roles.
Sharing rules and sharing sets: Bridging gaps
You can allow controlled exceptions with sharing rules, granting access based on record ownership or field values. Sharing sets extend record access to specific Experience Cloud users.
Organizations should only create sharing rules when necessary and regularly audit them to prevent sensitive data from being exposed unnecessarily.
Field-level security & field audit trails
Field-level security plays a crucial role in protecting sensitive information by ensuring users only have access to the data necessary for their job functions. Field history tracking and field audit trails are useful ways to track who is accessing and modifying fields, and can be a prompt to review access levels if unexpected users are making changes.
By restricting access to critical fields, such as financial data or personally identifiable information (PII), organizations can prevent unauthorized modifications and reduce the risk of data breaches.
Salesforce Shield is a paid add-on that comes with enhanced monitoring capabilities, allowing administrators to audit privileged user access and track changes to sensitive fields. This level of oversight helps ensure compliance with security policies while strengthening overall Salesforce security.
It offers superior security and compliance compared to standard Field History Tracking by providing long-term auditability, enhanced visibility, and stronger data protection. While standard tracking is limited to 20 fields per object and retains history for only 18–24 months, Shield’s Field Audit Trail stores data for up to 10 years, ensuring regulatory compliance. Event Monitoring adds detailed logs of who accessed what data, when, and from where, far beyond standard auditing capabilities. Additionally, Platform Encryption secures sensitive data at rest, preventing unauthorized access even from internal users.
Multi-Factor Authentication
Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) requires users to verify their identity using two separate methods before being given access to the Salesforce org or other system. This is a critical security control that helps prevent unauthorized access to a Salesforce org, particularly for privileged users with elevated access. Requiring MFA adds an extra layer of protection by ensuring that even if credentials are compromised, attackers cannot easily gain access to sensitive data.
Organizations can also implement Single Sign-On (SSO), which centralizes authentication and reduces the reliance on multiple passwords, minimizing the risk of credential-based attacks while improving Salesforce security.
Building a security-first culture
Building a security-first culture is essential for maintaining Salesforce security and reducing security risks associated with privileged access. This means security is prioritised in every decision by default at every level of the business. Employee training is essential when establishing a security-first culture, to raise awareness of security policies and educate staff on social engineering threats to prevent phishing attacks and credential theft. Enforcing strong password policies and monitoring login activity also help keep user accounts secure, reducing the likelihood of unauthorized access to sensitive data.
Principle of least privilege made easy with Gearset
Security should be embedded at every stage of the DevOps lifecycle — with Gearset’s role-based access control, Salesforce teams can easily uphold PoLP throughout their DevOps workflow.
Create and assign roles
Create roles within the Gearset app that define the level of access that role should have to specific orgs, pipelines, and CI jobs. You can also define granular access levels to app functionality.
For example, you may only want release managers to be able to deploy to production or limit backup access to read-only for admins and devs.
Once a user is assigned a role in the Gearset app, all the relevant permissions will automatically be applied and updated based on changes to roles rather than per user. This takes away the need to manually adjust permissions for each user, lowers the chance of human error, and significantly decreases the risk that users will have access levels beyond what’s required for their role.
Deployment and user access auditing
Get reports for user access at the click of a button for rapid auditing and permissions reviews. Gearset will generate a CSV file that gives an overview of each user, their assigned role, login activity, and org delegations.
Reports can also be generated for deployments. Simply specify which orgs you want to audit and the relevant timeframe to get a comprehensive CSV of deployments to your environment/s. Need to share the deployment report with other people? No worries — just list which emails you want to send the report to in the Gearset app and the report will be sent through to them automatically.
The easy way to apply the principle of least privilege in Salesforce
The principle of least privilege is one of the most effective ways to embed security into your DevOps lifecycle. By implementing role-based access control and limiting access to resources to privileged users in line with the PoLP, you can minimize data security risks and improve compliance. For best practice advice check out our DevSecOps webinar and ebook.
If you’re ready to make PoLP easy with RBAC, try Gearset free for 30 days or speak to one of our experts.
