Active Directory Under Siege: Why Critical Infrastructure Needs Stronger Security
The piece argues that Active Directory remains the crown-jewel target across enterprises and critical infrastructure. Complexity, legacy protocols and slow patch cycles (including a major 2025 privilege-escalation flaw) keep AD vulnerable. It recommends identity-first Zero Trust, privileged access tiering, hardening Kerberos/NTLM, rapid patching of domain controllers, and better monitoring/telemetry for abuse paths, with an emphasis on practical roadmaps over silver bullets.
For all the talk of shiny new clouds, Active Directory still decides who gets in and what they can touch. That’s why attackers keep coming back. With sprawling trust relationships, creaky protocols and uneven patching, AD offers dozens of ways to turn a toe-hold into total control. Even 2025 brought another priv-esc headache on domain controllers — patched, but not everywhere, not quickly.
How to toughen up (without breaking the place)
• Identity-first Zero Trust: verify explicitly, use Conditional Access and MFA.
• Tiered admin model: separate workstation, server and domain admin duties; no “god” accounts for daily work.
• Kill legacy: enforce LDAP/SMB signing, rein in NTLM, modernise TLS.
• Patch fast: prioritise DCs; test and deploy on a tight cadence.
• See the graph: use tools that map privilege paths and delegation risk; monitor for tell-tale AD abuse.
AD won’t vanish. But with the right guardrails and eyes on the wire, it doesn’t have to stay the soft underbelly.