Problem overview
Failed login attempts can indicate unauthorized access attempts, brute-force attacks, misconfigured credentials, or forgotten passwords. Without active monitoring, IT teams may miss critical security events that could signal an imminent threat. This monitor policy ensures real-time visibility into failed authentication attempts, helping organizations detect and respond to security incidents before they escalate.
Monitors
- Excessive Admin Login Failures (Failed Login monitor) Excessive Admin Login Failures (Failed Login monitor)
- Excessive Login Failures (All Users) (Failed Login monitor) Excessive Admin Login Failures (Failed Login monitor)
This monitor policy provides two monitoring options, allowing users to track failed authentication attempts based on their security needs. The Failed Admin Login Monitor specifically detects failed login attempts for administrator accounts, highlighting potential breaches or unauthorized access attempts on privileged accounts. The Failed Login Monitor tracks failed logins for all users, offering broader visibility into authentication failures across the entire system. By default, both monitors are enabled, but users can choose to keep only the one that aligns with their security policies. This monitor currently supports Windows, with macOS and Linux support planned for future releases.
Use cases
- Detect unauthorized login attempts on administrator accounts.
- Monitor failed login attempts for all users to identify security threats.
- Prevent brute-force attacks by identifying repeated failed authentication attempts.
- Enhance security logging and compliance auditing.
- Alert IT teams to misconfigured credentials or locked-out users.
Recommendations
- Choose the appropriate monitor based on your security needs—keep both enabled for full visibility or remove one to reduce noise.
- Pair with automated responses to temporarily lock accounts or notify security teams after multiple failed login attempts.
- Test in a controlled environment before full deployment to validate detection accuracy.
- Regularly review failed login alerts to identify patterns of suspicious activity.
- Contact Level support if you’re interested in macOS or Linux support.