Best Practices of Creating ACLs | ServiceNow ACLs Best Practices

Access Control Lists (ACLs) are an essential component of ServiceNow's security model, as they allow administrators to control access to data and functionality within the platform. Here are some best practices for implementing ACLs in ServiceNow:

What is ACLs in ServiceNow?

In ServiceNow, ACL stands for "Access Control List." An ACL is a set of rules that define who can access specific data or perform certain actions within the ServiceNow platform. 

ACLs are used to manage security and control access to ServiceNow records, fields, UI actions, and other resources. They can be configured at various levels, such as at the table level, field level, or record level.

ACLs consist of a series of conditions and scripts that evaluate whether a user has the appropriate level of access to perform a specific action or view specific data. These conditions and scripts can be customized based on the requirements of the organization. 

By using ACLs, ServiceNow administrators can ensure that only authorized users can access sensitive data or perform critical operations, helping to maintain data integrity and prevent unauthorized access or modification.

Things to remember before creating new ACL:

1.  Search all the ACL's created for the particular table and check if the ACL is already exist for the row level or field level. Never create duplicate ACL, you can edit it instead of creating a new one

because it may cause error later stages.

2.  Before writing ACL for any table for e.g. incident, first check parent child relation at ACL level if exist. So that accordingly you can create or modify the required ACL's.

Best Practices of Creating ACLs in ServiceNow:

1.  Use roles to simplify ACL management: Assign users to roles based on their job functions, and then apply ACLs to those roles. This makes it easier to manage permissions, as you can simply update the ACLs associated with a role to grant or revoke access. Users who pass the user role requirement of an ACL rule gain access to the protected object, such as a table, field, or database operation.

2.  Follow the principle of least privilege: Grant users only the permissions they need to perform their job functions, and nothing more. This helps minimize the risk of unauthorized access and data breaches.

3.  Use field-level ACLs to control access to sensitive data: Field-level ACLs allow you to control who can view or modify specific fields within a record. This is useful for protecting sensitive data, such as personally identifiable information (PII) or financial data.

4.  Test ACLs thoroughly: ACLs can be complex, and small errors in ACL configurations can have significant security implications. Always test ACLs thoroughly before deploying them to a production environment.

5.  Monitor ACL activity: Use ServiceNow's auditing capabilities to monitor ACL activity and detect any suspicious access attempts. This helps you identify and respond to security threats in a timely manner.

6.  Use conditional ACLs to provide more granular access control: Conditional ACLs allow you to specify additional conditions that must be met before access is granted. This provides more granular access control, as you can specify conditions such as user group membership or the value of a particular field.

7.   Regularly review and update ACLs:  As your organization changes and evolves, so too will your access control requirements. Regularly reviewing and updating your ACLs helps ensure that your security policies remain effective and up-to-date.

By following these best practices, you can ensure that your ServiceNow instance is secure and that users have access only to the data and functionality they need to perform their job functions. Please provide your feedback and suggestions related to ServiceNow ACLs best practices below in comment section.