Microsoft Rolls Out Azure AD Security Defaults to Protect Millions of Organizations from Password and Phishing Attacks

Microsoft is implementing security defaults for a huge number of Azure Active Directory (AD) accounts in order to combat password and phishing attacks. According to Microsoft, around 30 million businesses are currently utilizing these security defaults, and that will be extended to substantially more organizations over the next month, ultimately affecting 60 million people.

The goal of the security defaults is to automatically safeguard Azure AD users from the most popular assaults with minimal or no administrator intervention. The security defaults are automatically turned on and may be disabled by administrators if desired. Microsoft claims that since adopting the security defaults, they have seen a sharp drop in assaults, and they aim to help even more businesses take advantage of the enhanced protection these settings provide.

Run a free security scan in a few clicks

Guardio is a Chrome extension that monitors suspicious activity and blocks hackers from stealing your data.

How Azure AD works?

Azure AD is Microsoft's cloud-based identity and access management solution, allowing users to sign in and use resources. Azure AD also protects your company from advanced threats by providing a broad range of security features, including multi-factor authentication and Conditional Access. What are the benefits of Azure AD security defaults? You can use security settings to secure access to your account by preventing unauthorized users from seeing your data or accessing sensitive information, such as payment card details. When you enable Azure AD security defaults, you receive the following protections:

• Multi-factor authentication for all users: This adds an extra layer of protection by requiring that users confirm their identity with a second factor, such as a mobile app or phone call.
• Password hash synchronization: This ensures that passwords are securely stored in Azure AD; even if your passwords are compromised, they can't be used to access your resources.
• User risk policies: These detect suspicious activity and require users to take action to confirm their identity.
• Conditional Access: This allows you to set policies that enable or block access based on specific conditions, such as location or device type.

Enabling Azure AD security defaults is a great way to protect your organization from common attacks, and we encourage all organizations to take advantage of this valuable service.

Microsoft Azure Active Directory (AD) is one of the most well-known cloud-based identity and access management solutions on the market. The solution helps businesses keep track of user logins and provides a comprehensive set of security features, including multi-factor authentication and Conditional Access, to help them stay secure. To avoid password and phishing assaults, Microsoft is now automatically safeguarding Azure AD accounts with security defaults.

The primary goal of the security defaults is offering automatic protection against the most common cyber-attacks with little or no administrative intervention required. The security presets are enabled by default, but they may be disabled by admins if desired. Microsoft claims that since adopting the security defaults, it has seen a significant drop in assaults.

What are the most common attacks?

The most prevalent assaults are those that target passwords and phishing. Passwords are frequently the easiest point of entry for attackers, and phishing attacks have become more sophisticated in recent years. You may assist secure your organization from these typical types of assaults by enabling Azure AD security defaults.

We recommend that you enable Azure AD security defaults to protect your organization from many common attacks, and we urge all companies to utilize this useful service. Please go to Microsoft's website for further information on how to turn on Azure AD security defaults.

Run a free security scan in a few clicks

Guardio is a Chrome extension that monitors suspicious activity and blocks hackers from stealing your data.