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Zombie SaaS Accounts
The Security Risk Hiding in Your Offboarding Process
Most businesses disable a departing employee's email account and recover their laptop, but many overlook access to SaaS applications. These forgotten accounts, often called zombie accounts, can remain active for months after someone leaves the organisation, creating unnecessary security risks. A simple SaaS access audit can help identify and remove these accounts before they become a problem.
What Is a Zombie Account?
A zombie account is an active user account belonging to someone who no longer works for the business. The danger is simple: the credentials remain valid. If the former employee still has access, or if their credentials are compromised after they leave, systems and data may remain exposed. Many organisations discover former employees still accessing business applications months after their departure, often by accident rather than through a planned audit.
Where Zombie Accounts Commonly Hide
Use this repeatable process to vet extensions without creating an IT bottleneck:
Cloud Storage and Collaboration Platforms
Services such as OneDrive, Google Drive and Dropbox are common sources of lingering access. Shared folders, guest accounts, external links and personal email shares are frequently overlooked during offboarding, leaving sensitive company information accessible long after an employee has left.
CRM and Project Management Systems
Applications such as Salesforce, HubSpot, Jira, Monday.com, Asana and Notion are often managed by departments rather than IT teams. As a result, user accounts can remain active without anyone realising.
Shadow IT and Unauthorised Applications
The greatest risk often comes from software that IT doesn't know exists. Employees frequently sign up for tools using their company email address, including AI platforms, survey software, design tools and reporting applications. These accounts are rarely included in formal offboarding procedures and can easily be forgotten.
How to Conduct a SaaS Access Audit
1. Create a SaaS Inventory
Start by identifying all business applications in use, this process often reveals applications that are not actively managed by IT. So review:
- Microsoft Entra ID
- Google Workspace
- Okta
- Subscription records
- Expense claims
- Login notification emails
2. Compare Against Employee Leavers
Review staff departures from the last 12 months and cross-reference them against your SaaS inventory. Review staff departures from the last 12 months and cross-reference them against your SaaS inventory. For each platform, check:
- Whether the account is still active
- When it was last used
- What permissions it holds
3. Revoke Access and Establish a Process
Once identified, remove unnecessary access and document your findings. Regular reviews help turn a one-off clean-up exercise into an ongoing security control. To prevent future issues:
- Include SaaS applications in every offboarding checklist
- Enforce multi-factor authentication across business systems
- Conduct quarterly access reviews
- Maintain an up-to-date SaaS inventory
Making Offboarding More Secure
Removing zombie accounts is one of the simplest ways to strengthen your security posture. A comprehensive offboarding process should cover far more than email accounts and company devices. Every business application should be reviewed whenever an employee leaves to ensure access is removed promptly and consistently.
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