services / Azure / Azure Automation credential asset

An Azure Automation credential asset stores a username/password pair within an Automation account that runbooks and DSC configurations use to authenticate to external systems and resources.

The password value is write-only via ARM and is only retrievable from inside a runbook (Get-AutomationPSCredential); the control plane never returns the secret. The asset still represents a stored service-account identity.

Microsoft.​Automation/​automationAccounts/​credentials/​write

Creating or updating a credential asset lets an attacker plant attacker-controlled username/password material that runbooks authenticate with (persistence) or overwrite existing credentials to poison downstream automation (manipulation).

Risks

1. Data manipulation (HIGH)
2. Account persistence (BOOST)

Scope: HIGH

This privilege may grant access to sensitive data from a single organizational function, or allow interruption of a service supporting a single organizational function.

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