[REQ-PAW-102] Configure User Rights: Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation for PAWs

Target Scope

Applicable Systems: Privileged Access Workstations (PAWs) dedicated to Tier 0 and critical administrative functions. (For Tier 2 Client Workstations and Member Servers, refer to standard baseline REQ-END-109). (For Domain Controllers, refer to REQ-DC-122).
Operating Systems: Windows 10 Enterprise (1809 and above) and Windows 11 Enterprise.

Implementation Details

Priority: High
GPO Path / Registry Location:
- Policy Display Name: Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation
- Privilege Constant: SeEnableDelegationPrivilege
- GPO Path: Computer Configuration\Policies\Windows Settings\Security Settings\Local Policies\User Rights Assignment\Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation
- Registry Location: Stored inside local security database under privilege SeEnableDelegationPrivilege set to No one (Empty).

Rationale

The SeEnableDelegationPrivilege allows a security principal to modify the userAccountControl attribute on Active Directory user and computer objects to enable Kerberos Delegation flags: (1) TRUSTED_FOR_DELEGATION (Unconstrained Delegation); (2) TRUSTED_TO_AUTHENTICATE_FOR_DELEGATION (Constrained Delegation with Protocol Transition / S4U2Self). Kerberos delegation permits a service to impersonate an authenticated user to access back-end resources on their behalf.

1. Technical Threat Vector & Abuse Mechanics

Misused or abused delegation is one of the most devastating privilege escalation and persistence vectors in Active Directory: (1) Unconstrained Delegation: When a user authenticates to a server with unconstrained delegation, the Domain Controller embeds a copy of the user's Ticket Granting Ticket (TGT) in the service ticket. An attacker who controls a machine or service with unconstrained delegation can harvest TGTs of visiting Domain Admins from memory and achieve immediate, full domain compromise; (2) Protocol Transition Abuse: An attacker with rights to configure constrained delegation can configure an account to impersonate any domain user to target services without requiring the user's password; (3) Computer Account Hijacking: Granting this privilege allows an attacker to create rogue delegation pathways across the forest.

2. Architectural Defense & Least Privilege Enforcement

Privileged Access Workstations (PAWs) serve as the clean-source platform for managing Tier 0 Active Directory and cloud infrastructure. Because administrative credentials exist in memory on these devices, strict isolation must be maintained at the operating system level. Restricting this user right strictly prevents lower-tier sessions, third-party software, or interactive users from interfering with administrative operations, upholding the Clean Source Principle and preventing token kidnapping or session hijacking.

On Endpoints and PAWs, SeEnableDelegationPrivilege must be strictly set to No one (Empty). Workstations and member servers must never have the authority to configure Kerberos delegation. On Domain Controllers, this right must be strictly restricted to Administrators (S-1-5-32-544), and delegation changes must be subject to strict change management.

3. MITRE ATT&CK Mapping

T1558 - Steal or Forge Kerberos Tickets
T1558.003 - Steal or Forge Kerberos Tickets: Kerberoasting
T1134.005 - Access Token Manipulation: SID History Injection
T1078.002 - Valid Accounts: Domain Accounts

Legacy Impact & Compatibility

Operational Impact: Restricting SeEnableDelegationPrivilege prevents unauthorized configuration of Kerberos delegation. Standard administrative workflows are unaffected, as delegation configuration is performed centrally on Domain Controllers by Domain Administrators. Audit Security Event ID 4738 (A user account was modified) and Event ID 4742 (A computer account was modified) for delegation flag updates.

Implementation Steps

Option A: Group Policy Object (GPO) Configuration (Preferred)

Open the Group Policy Management Console (gpmc.msc).
Navigate to the targeted GPO linked to Tier 0 PAW systems (e.g., GPO_Hardening_PAW).
In the console tree, browse to: Computer Configuration\Policies\Windows Settings\Security Settings\Local Policies\User Rights Assignment
Open the policy Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation.
Select the Define these policy settings check box.
Click Add User or Group... and ensure the principal list is empty (or remove all assigned accounts/groups so that no principals are configured).
Click Apply and OK.
Apply and verify policy enforcement across target hosts using gpupdate /force and inspect with secedit /export /cfg C:\Windows\Temp\sec_audit.cfg.

Option B: PowerShell & Registry Configuration (Remediation / Non-GPO)

Download Script: Configure-PawUraSeEnableDelegationPrivilege.ps1

# Configure-PawUraSeEnableDelegationPrivilege.ps1
# Configure-PawUraSeEnableDelegationPrivilege.ps1
$SecTempDir = Join-Path $env:TEMP "SecurityTemplates"
if (-not (Test-Path $SecTempDir)) { New-Item -Path $SecTempDir -ItemType Directory -Force | Out-Null }
$CfgFile = Join-Path $SecTempDir "ura_seenabledelegationprivilege.cfg"
$DbFile = Join-Path $SecTempDir "secedit_seenabledelegationprivilege.sdb"
$LogFile = Join-Path $SecTempDir "secedit.log"

$Process = Start-Process secedit -ArgumentList "/export /cfg `"$CfgFile`"" -Wait -NoNewWindow -PassThru
if ($Process.ExitCode -ne 0) { Throw "Failed to export security template" }

$ConfigText = Get-Content -Path $CfgFile -Raw
if ($ConfigText -notmatch "\[Privilege Rights\]") {
    $ConfigText += "`r`n[Privilege Rights]`r`n"
}

$Lines = $ConfigText -split "`r?`n"
$NewLines = @()
$InPriv = $false
$KeyAdded = $false

foreach ($Line in $Lines) {
    if ($Line -match "^\[(.*)\]$") {
        if ($Matches[1] -eq "Privilege Rights") {
            $InPriv = $true
        } else {
            $InPriv = $false
        }
    }
    if ($InPriv -and $Line -match "^\s*SeEnableDelegationPrivilege\s*=") {
        $NewLines += "SeEnableDelegationPrivilege = "
        $KeyAdded = $true
    } else {
        $NewLines += $Line
    }
}

if (-not $KeyAdded) {
    # Find Privilege Rights section index and insert it right after
    $Idx = $NewLines.IndexOf("[Privilege Rights]")
    if ($Idx -ge 0) {
        $NewLines.Insert($Idx + 1, "SeEnableDelegationPrivilege = ")
    } else {
        $NewLines += "SeEnableDelegationPrivilege = "
    }
}

$NewLines | Set-Content -Path $CfgFile -Force
$Proc = Start-Process secedit -ArgumentList "/configure /db `"$DbFile`" /cfg `"$CfgFile`" /areas USER_RIGHTS /log `"$LogFile`"" -Wait -NoNewWindow -PassThru
if ($Proc.ExitCode -ne 0) { Throw "Failed to configure secedit user rights" }
Remove-Item -Path $CfgFile, $DbFile -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

To audit the hardening status: Download Script: Get-PawUraSeEnableDelegationPrivilegeStatus.ps1

# Get-PawUraSeEnableDelegationPrivilegeStatus.ps1
# Get-PawUraSeEnableDelegationPrivilegeStatus.ps1
$SecTempDir = Join-Path $env:TEMP "SecurityTemplates"
if (-not (Test-Path $SecTempDir)) { New-Item -Path $SecTempDir -ItemType Directory -Force | Out-Null }
$CfgFile = Join-Path $SecTempDir "ura_audit_seenabledelegationprivilege.cfg"

$Process = Start-Process secedit -ArgumentList "/export /cfg `"$CfgFile`"" -Wait -NoNewWindow -PassThru
if ($Process.ExitCode -ne 0) {
    Write-Output "Non-Compliant"
    exit 1
}

$ConfigText = Get-Content -Path $CfgFile -Raw
Remove-Item -Path $CfgFile -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

$Match = $ConfigText -match "(?mi)^\s*SeEnableDelegationPrivilege\s*=\s*(.*)$"
$CurrentValue = ""
if ($Match) {
    $CurrentValue = $Matches[1].Trim()
}

$Expected = ""
if ($CurrentValue -eq $Expected) {
    Write-Output "Compliant"
    exit 0
} else {
    Write-Output "Non-Compliant"
    exit 1
}

Sources & Compliance References

ANSSI Active Directory Hardening Guide: ANSSI Active Directory Hardening Guide: R28 (User Rights Assignment)
CIS Benchmark: 2.2.21 (L1) Ensure 'Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation' is set to 'No One' (Workstations/PAWs) / 'Administrators' (DCs)
Microsoft Security Baseline: User Rights Configuration specifications
Microsoft Learn: User Rights Assignment Reference

REQ-PAW-102 - Configure User Rights: Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation for PAWs