# How does administrative tool restriction harden industrial systems?

- Link: https://www.agilicus.com/faq/how-does-administrative-tool-restriction-harden-industrial-systems/
- Published: 2026-05-11T15:50:04+00:00
- Author: Don Bowman

Administrative tool restriction limits the availability of powerful system utilities,
such as PowerShell and command-line interfaces, to only specifically authorised 
service accounts. Attackers often “live off the land” by using these native tools
to perform discovery, escalate privileges, and execute malware. By restricting these
tools and using application whitelisting to block unauthorised executables, organisations
can significantly reduce the internal tools available to an adversary. Discover 
[system hardening techniques](https://www.agilicus.com/from-tunnels-to-zero-trust-the-evolution-of-industrial-remote-access/)
in our evolution guide.

For more information, see [Industrial Cyber Security Best Practices](https://www.agilicus.com/white-papers/industrial-cyber-security-best-practices/).