# What is the Active Directory scan?

### Intro

An Active Directory (AD) is a directory service provided by Microsoft operating systems. It enables the network administrator of a company to centralize user and machine authentication, manage permissions, and control access to network resources.

When dealing with a company that has an AD, attackers aim to become the system administrator. By doing so, they gain control over all workstations and servers, allowing them to exploit the attack.

### How does it work?

The AD scan uses the PingCastle tool to analyze the insured company's Active Directory configurations and assess their security level. It identifies:

* Outdated objects: systems that are too old or obsolete;
* Overly permissive trust relationships;
* Overly permissive user permissions;
* Anomalies, such as weak password policies.

The scan results highlight potential vulnerabilities, classified into four levels: low, medium, high, and critical. If a vulnerability is detected, the necessary remediation steps are detailed by clicking on each misconfiguration.

{% hint style="info" %}
Two types of Active Directory coexist at Microsoft:

* An on-premises Active Directory, analyzed by Stoïk Protect's Active Directory scan;
* An Azure Cloud Active Directory, also called Entra ID, whose configurations are analyzed by Stoïk Protect's Cloud scan.
  {% endhint %}


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