It’s a digital jungle out there; you probably recognize how cloud-based platforms like Coupa
have transformed how you manage spending, making everything more efficient and
interconnected. However, there’s an important downside to this digital shift: increased security
risks that could seriously affect your organization.
If you rely more on platforms like Coupa to handle sensitive financial operations, the necessity
for iron-clad access governance is more pressing than ever. Some specific risks you face
include:
1. Predefined Roles: Coupa includes a set of predefined roles that cover common user types,
such as:
● Administrator: Full access to all features and data. Consider this the "keys to the
kingdom role.
● Requester: Can create purchase requisitions.
● Approver: Can approve or reject requisitions and invoices.
● Supplier: Can manage their own company information and transactions.
2. Custom Roles: Organizations can create custom roles to meet their specific needs, allowing
for fine-grained control over user access. When creating a custom role, administrators can
select specific permissions from a list of available options, determining what actions a user with
that role can perform. It is crucial to regularly review and refine these custom roles to prevent
privilege creep.
3. Role Assignment: Roles are assigned to users through their user profiles. A user can have
one or more roles. When a user logs in, their assigned roles determine what they can see and
do within Coupa. Understanding how these roles are assigned is key:
● By User: Assigning roles directly to individual users, ideal for unique access needs.
● By Group: Assigning roles to user groups, streamlining management for users with
similar responsibilities.
● Via Integration: Leveraging your Identity Provider (like Azure AD) to assign roles based
on group membership.
4. Permission Management: Coupa’s permission management system allows administrators
to control access to specific features, data, and even individual fields within the system.
Permissions can be assigned at the role level or directly to individual users.
5. User Types: Coupa supports different user types, such as internal users, supplier users, and contingent workers. Each user type may have different roles and permissions associated with it.
Ensure that the appropriate user type is selected during user creation.
6. Integration with Identity Providers: Coupa can integrate with identity providers like
Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) to manage user authentication and role assignment,
allowing for centralized user management and simplifying the process of assigning roles to users. This integration typically uses protocols like SAML or OIDC for authentication and SCIM
for user provisioning.
Grant users only the minimum necessary permissions to perform their job functions. Regularly audit user permissions to ensure compliance.
Define access based on attributes – user (department), resource (data sensitivity), environment (time). This enables dynamic access, precisely controlling Coupa's features. PBAC minimizes static role reliance, reducing privilege accumulation risks and simplifying management.
Periodically review user roles and permissions to ensure they are still appropriate. Automate access reviews to ensure timely recertification of user access.
When you’re using Coupa or any cloud-based platform handling sensitive business data, it’s crucial to grasp the significant risks of potential data breaches. These platforms are treasure troves of financial information—purchase orders, invoices, expense reports, supplier contracts, and payment details—making them prime targets for attackers.
A data breach in Coupa could spell disaster. Immediate financial hits include breach remediation costs, fines, and legal fees. Long-term, your reputation could be severely damaged. Customer trust, once lost, is hard to regain. This could result in clients and partners withdrawing and your brand being associated with identity security risks.
Operational paralysis is also a risk—imagine losing access to critical data during an audit or end-of-quarter reporting. This can disrupt your supply chain and trigger steep penalties due to regulatory non-compliance.
Bottom line: Be proactive about identity security. Don’t just put up a fence—build a fortress.
Using Coupa means introducing a third party into your security ecosystem. This trust can expose you to:
Phishing attacks leveraging the Coupa brand
Zero-day vulnerabilities in Coupa’s software
Man-in-the-middle attacks during data transmission
To mitigate this:
Conduct regular security audits
Maintain communication with Coupa’s security team
Build an incident response plan that includes third-party risk scenarios
The CVE-2022-2214 vulnerability in the coupa-common-js npm package revealed the dangers of supply chain attacks. If malicious code infiltrates Coupa, it can:
Grant unauthorized access to financial data
Manipulate transactions
Create backdoors for future exploits
A single compromised component can breach your entire network. Always vet your integrations and dependencies.
Coupa’s cloud architecture brings additional risks:
Data residency issues: Where is your data stored? Who can access it?
Shared infrastructure risks: Issues affecting other clients could affect you.
Misconfigurations: Improper setup can expose sensitive data.
Insecure APIs: Weak APIs are open doors to attackers.
Understand the shared responsibility model—know which security tasks are yours and which are Coupa’s.
When integrating Coupa with ERP or CRM systems, you interact with Coupa APIs. Key scopes include:
coupa.supplier.read: Read-only supplier info
coupa.invoice.write: Create/update invoices
coupa.payment.execute: Initiate payments (use extreme caution)
coupa.report.run: Access Coupa reports
Best practices:
Use OAuth 2.0
Monitor API access
Apply least privilege
Implement API rate limits
Coupa’s support for global payments introduces fraud risks:
Multiple jurisdictions: Exploited by cybercriminals
Currency exchange: Fluctuations can hide fraud
Time-zone fraud: Manipulating timing for gains
These complexities can result in legal penalties and reputation loss. Be aware of international regulations.
Shared accounts are a major vulnerability:
Undermines user accountability
Makes multi-factor authentication ineffective
Complicates activity tracking
Violates the principle of least privilege
Avoid shared accounts. They weaken compliance, increase insider threats, and eliminate traceability.
Access governance provides a secure framework for managing user access within Coupa. It includes:
Policy-based access control
Attribute-based access control
Just-in-time privileged access
Real-time threat analytics
Continuous monitoring
Automated provisioning and de-provisioning
Robust audit trails
This ensures integrity of financial data and enforces accountability in multi-cloud environments.
Centralized Identity and Access Management (IAM)
Policy-Based Access Control (PBAC)
Automated Access Lifecycle Management
Continuous Monitoring and Auditing
Automated Segregation of Duties (SoD)
Privileged Access Management
Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Compliance Reporting and Analytics
Access Governance also offers significant business advantages:
Reduce Fraud and Errors: Detect unauthorized transactions quickly
Increase Efficiency: Automate access reviews and reduce IT workload
Streamlined Audits: Speed up compliance reporting
Better Visibility and Control: Centralized access data aids decision-making
Enforce Compliance: Meet regulations like SOX, GDPR, and CCPA
Faster Onboarding/Offboarding: Boost agility and productivity
Stronger Security = Competitive Edge: Build customer trust
An enterprise-grade access governance solution:
Applies fine-grained access control
Offers continuous monitoring
Manages third-party rights
Supports cloud integrations
Detects suspicious activity
Enforces multi-factor authentication
Implementing access governance reduces risks of data breaches and financial losses while improving operational control.
Don’t let access risks undermine your Coupa investment. Our access governance solutions:
Provide granular access control
Ensure long-term compliance
Protect your cloud financial environment
Contact us today for a personalized security assessment and secure your Coupa ecosystem.
Thank you for reaching out. If you have any questions, inquiries, or require assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact us using the form below. A member of our team will respond to your message as promptly as possible.
