Pathlock Cybersecurity Application Controls

SAP applications, especially ERP, form the operational backbone of many organizations, but the SAP/Line of Business (LoB) landscape is becoming more diverse in architecture and deployment models. This diversity, combined with the criticality of these systems, creates distinct security challenges that require specialized teams and tools. Key problem areas include SAP-specific system hardening across OS, database, and application layers; controlled patch and hotfix management without disrupting operations; ABAP-focused code vulnerability analysis; high-volume log analysis for threat detection; support for heterogeneous and hybrid environments; and bridging siloed SAP teams with broader cybersecurity operations. Data security and access control are emphasized as evolving needs: dynamic masking, scrambling of replicated test data, in-transit protection, and data loss prevention, along with moving beyond static RBAC toward policy-driven, attribute-based access control (ABAC) for scalable governance.

Pathlock (formerly Greenlight GRC) offers Cybersecurity Application Controls (CAC), an SAP-focused set of modules delivered via an ABAP-native architecture for SAP ECC and S/4HANA. CAC comprises Dynamic Access Controls (masking, scrambling, DLP, ABAC), Threat Detection and Response (real-time monitoring, correlation across extensive SAP logs, UEBA, automated response, SIEM integration), Transport Control (security checks for SAP TMS to prevent malicious changes), Vulnerability Management (large scan library, audit campaign orchestration, patch applicability/priority analysis), and Code Scanning (enhancing SAP ATC for ABAP security/compliance checks). Strengths center on SAP specificity, breadth within SAP, and uncommon data-centric controls, while challenges include limited non-SAP LoB support, lack of automated patch deployment (planned), and code analysis limited to ABAP rather than Java.

• SAP is described as the leading vendor of Line of Business (LoB) applications.
• Pathlock was previously named Greenlight GRC.
• Pathlock has acquired Akquinet’s SAST portfolio, CSI, Appsian, and SecurityWeaver.
• Pathlock Cybersecurity Application Controls are delivered as part of the Pathlock Native Platform using an ABAP-native architecture.
• The CAC focus is currently on SAP ECC and S/4HANA environments.
• Threat Detection and Response scans up to 67 different log files, including SAP Cloud Logs.
• The Threat Detection and Response module includes 1500+ out-of-the-box customizable threat detection signatures.
• Transport Control provides 90+ out-of-the-box customizable security checks for SAP TMS.
• Vulnerability Management provides 4000+ out-of-the-box customizable scans.
• Code Scanning provides 150+ out-of-the-box customizable security and compliance checks and enhances SAP ATC.

• “SAP systems of different types and other LoB systems operated in different deployment models, need special care from security teams that understand the specifics of these environments, and are equipped with specialized tools.”
• “Modern cybersecurity best practices require a holistic and integrated security platform approach to improve the overall security of these environments.”
• “Dynamic data security controls are essential to ensure comprehensive protection of production and non-production data, as well as enforcing data loss prevention (DLP) mechanisms.”
• “A policy-based approach is important for managing access securely and effectively across an infinitely growing number of users and applications as organizations scale and migrate to S/4HANA.”
• “Dynamic Access Controls (DAC) is a module that is rarely found in this type of solution.”
• “Policies can be implemented centrally across business applications and do not require specific coding or customizations at the application level.”
• “In the absence of appropriate security measures, vulnerable code, manipulated data, and other malicious activities could be injected into the SAP systems during these change management processes.”
• “The module continuously monitors, reviews and, if required, blocks transports with potentially malicious content.”
• “The module facilitates prescriptive remediation and targeted deployment of patches but does not yet support automated deployment of patches.”
• “This capability enables organizations to identify security vulnerabilities early in the development lifecycle and eliminates the chance of introducing vulnerable code to production SAP systems.”