Microsoft Purview · Insider Risk Management
Insider Risk Management Session Approvers
Provides controlled approval and oversight of user session-based activities within Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management, without granting access to investigations, alerts, cases, or sensitive content.
Scope: Session-based activity approval within Insider Risk Management without investigation access
Permissions
- Insider Risk Management Sessions - Approve or deny session-based activity requests
- Review session activity details for approval decisions
- View session request metadata and justifications
- CANNOT access alerts, cases, or investigation data
- CANNOT view sensitive content or forensic evidence
- CANNOT modify policies or settings
Common use cases
- Approving user session monitoring requests
- Providing management oversight for session-based activities
- Authorizing session captures for specific investigations
- Maintaining separation of duties for session approval workflows
Best practices
- Assign to managers or HR leads who authorize monitoring activities
- Keep separate from Investigator and Analyst roles for separation of duties
- Document approval justifications for audit trail
- Review session requests promptly to avoid investigation delays
Security considerations
- Approval authority for potentially intrusive session monitoring
- No access to investigation data — limited blast radius if compromised
- All approval decisions are logged in audit trail
- Important check-and-balance for employee monitoring activities
Common questions
When should I assign the Insider Risk Management Session Approvers role?
Assign Insider Risk Management Session Approvers when you need to: Approving user session monitoring requests; Providing management oversight for session-based activities; Authorizing session captures for specific investigations; and Maintaining separation of duties for session approval workflows. It is part of Microsoft Purview and should be granted as a least-privilege alternative to broader roles like Global Administrator.
What can someone with the Insider Risk Management Session Approvers role do?
The Insider Risk Management Session Approvers role grants permissions including: Insider Risk Management Sessions - Approve or deny session-based activity requests; Review session activity details for approval decisions; View session request metadata and justifications; CANNOT access alerts, cases, or investigation data; CANNOT view sensitive content or forensic evidence; and CANNOT modify policies or settings. See the Permissions section above for the full list.
What are the security risks of the Insider Risk Management Session Approvers role?
Key considerations when assigning Insider Risk Management Session Approvers: Approval authority for potentially intrusive session monitoring; No access to investigation data — limited blast radius if compromised; All approval decisions are logged in audit trail; and Important check-and-balance for employee monitoring activities. Review the Security considerations section before assignment, and pair with Privileged Identity Management (PIM) for just-in-time access where possible.