Identity security is no longer just a concern for large enterprises but needs to be part of the defences of small and medium sized businesses too. CrowdStrike found that 80% of breaches in 2024 were malware-free. That means attackers aren’t breaking in, they’re logging in, often using stolen or misused credentials. And when machine identities and service accounts are left unmonitored, they become an easy target.
CrowdStrike Identity Threat Protection specifically addresses this issue. Rather than focusing on endpoints or signatures, it provides continuous visibility into who and what is accessing your systems. Whether it’s a user, a bot, or a backup process, this
solution uses behavioural analytics to flag suspicious logins, lateral movement via service accounts, or attempts to escalate privileges. All this is achieved in real time, even if attackers have valid credentials.
Importantly for SMBs, there is no extra infrastructure to manage. It runs through the same lightweight agent already used by the CrowdStrike Falcon platform, making it easy to deploy and scale. You can spot unexpected access attempts, like an old backup job trying to access sensitive folders, or a service account logging in from an unexpected location. The platform gives your team clear, actionable alerts to limit damage and downtime.
This isn’t theoretical. CrowdStrike has stopped real-world attacks that abused orphaned service accounts or escalated access via misconfigured permissions. These are risks that often go unnoticed in small businesses running lean IT teams.
By treating identity as a core part of your security posture, you can close the gap attackers are most likely to exploit, without overloading your team.
