Employee downgraded me to owner, stole keys

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Employee downgraded me to owner, stole keys

Amanda Besemer Sampson 25

Help! I am the rightful owner of my server and app, and a rouge contractor just set me as owner, set himself as root and downloaded keys.

We cannot access our app, code, databases. How do I get access to be the General Administrator and reset all keys. I cannot find a phone number for Azure access help. I have developer-level support.

My goals are to

Become the General Administrator of our Azure server, databases, apps
Replace the keys (he downloaded backdoors to everything)

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Answer 1

Alex Burlachenko 9,085

hi there Amanda, wow, that's a messed up situation.....

for azure specifically, if u still have any access at all (even just developer level), u can try to reclaim admin rights. go to azure active directory roles and administrators in the portal. look for 'global administrator' role assignments. if u see that contractor there, u might be able to remove them if u have privilege management rights.

since he took the keys, u need to rotate ALL of them immediately. check azure key vault first, regenerate every single key, secret and certificate. yes, it's a pain, but better safe than sorry.

pls check if multi factor authentication was bypassed. turn it on for all admin accounts if it's off. this might help in other tools too.

would u like an general advice? if u use any other cloud services, do the same thing there. rotate keys, check admin lists, enable mfa everywhere. worth looking into setting up privileged identity management for the future so this doesn't happen again.

aha, and about azure support, since u have developer level, u can open a ticket in the portal. they might help escalate this. use the word 'security breach' in the ticket, it sometimes gets faster attention ;D

good luck! hope u kick that contractor out soon :))

Best regards,

Alex

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Amanda Besemer Sampson 25 Reputation points

2025-06-10T09:23:52.55+00:00

Thank you. I am unsure how to get an actual ticket to support.
Alex Burlachenko 9,085 Reputation points

2025-06-10T09:38:35.6933333+00:00

Hi... log into the azure portal (yes, even with ur limited access). in the top search bar, type 'help + support'. u'll see an option for 'create a support request'. click that bad boy lol

now, here's the trick, pick 'technical' for issue type, then under service choose 'azure active directory' or 'subscription management' (whichever fits best). for problem type, go with 'cannot manage resources' or 'access and permissions'. when filling out the details, be SUPER clear say it's a 'security incident' (that gets priority). mention ur admin was demoted and keys were stolen. add ur subscription ID if u know it

since u have developer support, u might hit a paywall, but try anyway! sometimes they help with urgent security stuff even if ur plan is basic.

the direct link to create a support ticket in Azure Azure Help + Support

just log in, click "Create a support request", and follow the steps i mentioned earlier.

if u don't see the option right away, make sure ur account has at least "Contributor" access on the subscription. if not, u might need someone else in ur org to submit the ticket for u...

Sure u will done it.

rgds,

Alex
Amanda Besemer Sampson 25 Reputation points

2025-06-11T17:11:28.12+00:00

Thank you!

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