7 Key Steps to Removing Access for Terminated Employees

When an employee leaves a company, it’s important to remove their access to secure information that could be leaked.

Whether the departure was voluntary or involuntary, failing to revoke their access to software and accounts can increase the chance of facing risks like security breaches, intellectual property loss, data theft, and regulatory non-compliance.

In this article, we’ll explain the importance of removing access for terminated employees and provide a checklist to help you make this process easier.

Why Do You Need to Remove Employee Access?

Some terminated employees, like those who have been let go under unfavorable circumstances, may seek retribution against your organization.

Assuming they still have access to sensitive information, company systems, or physical premises, they may cause harm, either intentionally or unintentionally.

Additionally, many industry regulations and data protection laws mandate timely access revocation upon employee termination. If you fail to remove access immediately after terminating an employee, it can lead to compliance issues.

7-Step Checklist for Removing Access for Terminated Employees

Here’s a simple checklist to follow when removing IT access during the termination process.

1. Immediate Actions

As soon as an employee’s termination is confirmed by the HR team, initiate the access removal or deprovisioning process. Disable the employee’s account and revoke system privileges to internal databases.

These actions are time-sensitive and often coordinated between HR and IT to ensure a seamless and secure offboarding process.

Tips:

• To prevent delay, automate employee offboarding using tools like ezOnboard to trigger the deactivation of user accounts immediately upon confirmation of termination.
• Schedule a swift meeting between the human resources team and the IT department to review the employees’ access levels and ensure that all necessary deactivations are initiated.
• Have an IT offboarding checklist ready for same-day terminations to avoid missed steps.

2. Accounts and Credentials

Find all accounts and credentials associated with the terminated employee, including local and network accounts, cloud services, corporate applications, and email accounts. Reset passwords or disable these accounts to prevent unauthorized access attempts.

Leaving active credentials in place after termination creates a major security risk. Former employees could knowingly or unknowingly access sensitive business data, make unauthorized changes, or expose the company to breaches.

Tips:

• Automate tools to generate a complete list of all accounts and credentials the employee has access to, so nothing is overlooked.
• Implement batch processing to deactivate multiple accounts simultaneously.
• Review and update any shared password vaults or management systems to ensure the terminated employee’s access is completely removed.

3. Device Retrieval

Retrieving company-issued devices like laptops, smartphones, and security tokens is important to prevent unauthorized remote access.

Schedule device pickup or return during the termination process. You should also verify device serial numbers against inventory. Then, inspect devices for damage or tampering.

Tips:

• To prevent data breaches or loss, create a protocol for quickly retrieving company-issued devices on an employee’s last day.
• Include device return instructions in the termination letter to ensure the departing employee knows how to proceed.
• Use an IT asset management solution to easily identify and track devices owned by the former employee.

4. Security Protocols

Security protocols refer to rules, policies, and technical measures your organization should follow to ensure data security when an employee leaves.

Review and update these security protocols to see if the terminated employee can bypass access controls or exploit vulnerabilities. This may include changing encryption keys, revoking digital certificates, or updating firewall rules.

Tips:

• Conduct a security assessment to identify potential vulnerabilities exposed by the termination process and address them promptly.
• Regularly update and review encryption keys and digital certificates, especially after employee termination, to prevent unauthorized access.
• Adjust firewall rules and network access controls to reflect the termination.

5. Physical Access

Physical security measures are often overlooked during offboarding, but they’re just as important as digital safeguards. Terminated employees with access to office spaces, server rooms, or storage areas could pose a significant risk.

You should deactivate the terminated employee’s physical access credentials, such as keycards or biometric identifiers. Update access control lists and make sure that the individual cannot enter restricted areas or premises.

Tips:

• Check if physical access systems are integrated with HR databases to revoke access upon termination automatically.
• Conduct a physical security audit to ensure all access points are secure and no backdoors are left accessible.
• Change access codes or reissue keycards for sensitive areas as needed, particularly if the terminated employee had access to important or secure areas.

6. External Services and Partners

External services include third-party platforms or partner-facing tools that terminated employees may have used for client support, social media management, payment processing, or cloud collaboration. These often exist outside your core IT ecosystem, which makes them easy to overlook.

Notify external service providers, vendors, or partners with whom the terminated employee may have had access or shared credentials. Request that their user access be revoked or their credentials reset.

Tips:

• Use a centralized access management tool for external services to quickly revoke permissions without contacting each service provider individually.
• Establish a standard procedure for notifying external vendors and partners about terminations to ensure timely access revocation.
• Review and secure any accounts that were shared with external parties so that the terminated employee can no longer access them.

7. Documentation and Compliance

Document all actions taken to remove the terminated employee’s access, such as account deactivations, device retrievals, security changes, and communication logs. 

Doing so helps you meet compliance with relevant industry regulations and internal policies like HIPAA or SOC 2.

You should also maintain accurate records for auditing purposes. This reduces the risk of fines or penalties.

Tips:

• Use tools that automatically log and report the deactivation of accounts and access rights for compliance purposes.
• Schedule regular reviews of compliance documentation to make sure that all termination procedures are correctly documented and up-to-date.
• Maintain detailed audit trails of access removal activities, including timestamps and responsible parties, for auditing and compliance verification.

ezOnboard Lets You Remove IT Access Automatically

ezOnboard by CloudView Partners is an automated offboarding platform that helps your organization remove IT access for terminated employees.

Here’s how ezOnboard can make things easier for you:

Automated Deactivation of Accounts

Immediately upon an employee’s termination being recorded in the HR system, ezOnboard can automatically trigger the deactivation or deletion of the employee’s Active Directory (Entra ID) account.

Revocation of Access Rights

ezOnboard makes sure that all specific access rights and permissions associated with the terminated employee are revoked.

This includes access to internal assets and systems, applications, databases, and other resources the employee had permission rights to, thus securing sensitive company or client data.

License Reclamation

The software automates the process of reclaiming any software licenses that were allocated to the terminated employee.

License reclamation helps optimize the company’s SaaS management and spending. It also ensures that unused licenses are promptly available for reallocation to other employees or new hires.

Customizable Offboarding Workflows

Organizations can configure ezOnboard to follow custom offboarding workflows that align with their internal policies and procedures.

A customizable offboarding workflow lets you include specific steps that might be required for certain roles or departments. This results in a thorough and compliant offboarding process.

Consistent Application of Policies

By automating the offboarding process, ezOnboard can consistently apply company policies regarding terminated employees. It reduces manual workload, which is prone to inconsistency and human errors.

This uniformity is important for maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements and internal security policies.

Reporting and Audit Trails

ezOnboard provides detailed reports and audit trails of all actions taken during the offboarding process.

Reporting and auditing are part of regulatory compliance, as they allow organizations to demonstrate that access rights were properly revoked in accordance with company policies and legal requirements.

Enhanced Security and Risk Management

Automatically removing access for terminated employees minimizes the risk of data breaches and other security incidents that can occur when ex-employees retain access to company data and systems.

It guarantees that sensitive information remains secure and that the company’s IT environment is tightly controlled.

Automate IT Offboarding with ezOnboard

ezOnboard seamlessly integrates your HR software with Microsoft Active Directory (Entra ID). This integration automates the offboarding process, which means that terminated employees are automatically removed from your company’s database.

ezOnboard can immediately deactivate user accounts, remove system access, and reclaim software licenses. This ensures your organization’s security, integrity, and compliance while providing a seamless offboarding experience for departing employees.

With ezOnboard, your IT team can also focus on business-critical tasks instead of dealing with routine tasks. This saves valuable time and effort, which can ultimately impact your bottom line.

Simplify your offboarding process today by requesting a demo! Or, check the ROI calculator to see how much money ezOnboard can save you.

FAQs About Removing Access for Terminated Employees

What is the procedure for removing access for an employee when they leave an organization?

The process involves disabling user accounts, revoking access to internal systems, collecting devices, and updating security protocols. It also covers deactivating physical access, notifying external partners, and documenting the steps taken for compliance purposes.

Why is it important to deactivate employee accounts and access immediately after termination?

Delays in deactivating accounts increase the risk of unauthorized access, data breaches, or misuse of sensitive information. Immediate actions can protect company assets, prevent malicious behavior, and maintain compliance with security and privacy regulations.

Can I access my work email after being fired?

No. Once terminated, your access to all company systems, including work email, will be immediately disabled by the IT team. Any continued access may violate company policies and data protection laws.

What is required when terminating an employee?

Employee termination requires clear communication, documentation, and coordination between HR and IT teams. This includes collecting equipment, revoking access, updating internal systems, and ensuring legal and compliance requirements are met.