The product set to be released as a standalone product and as part of Business Premium
Microsoft has announced a new security product named ‘Microsoft Defender for Business’ that aims to bring enterprise-grade endpoint security to small and medium businesses.
In a blog post covering the launch, Microsoft 365’s product marketing manager Jon Maunder said the platform is specially designed for organisations with fewer than 300 employees.
“Defender for Business elevates security from traditional antivirus to next-generation protection, endpoint detection and response, threat and vulnerability management, and more….Defender for Business helps you to protect against cybersecurity threats including malware and ransomware across Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android devices,” shared Maunder, adding that the new tool will soon be available for preview.
Microsoft is already in the process of previewing an overhauled version of Microsoft Defender for PC that’ll bring some of the famed enterprise-grade endpoint security to home users, enabling them to monitor their non-Windows devices through a single pane-of-glass.
Designed for Small-Medium Businesses
Maunder goes on to say that Microsoft Defender for Business will enable SMBs to configure and manage the security of their endpoints through a simplified interface and also offer automated investigation and remediation.
Building a case for the tool, he says it’s designed to be in tune with the sensibilities of SMBs and offers threat and vulnerability management functionality, which will help customers identify and address software vulnerabilities and misconfigurations.
Microsoft Defender for Business will also have Endpoint detection and response (EDR) functionalities and uses behavioural-based detection and response alerts to help customers identify and remove persistent threats.
Additionally, customers will be able to automate Defender for Business to carry out remediation tasks automatically.
Once the tool is available, customers will be able to buy it as a standalone offering costing $3 per user per month (UK and EU prices TBC). It will also be included as part of Microsoft 365 Business Premium accounts and can be integrated with Microsoft 365 Lighthouse.
As a business we have been making the most of Windows Defender as part of our offering to our customers and is always included as part of our 365 packages, because we understand that security is paramount. The added Enterprise-grade features though will be an enormous boost to smaller businesses and it will be interesting to see how Microsoft evolves Defender in the coming calendar year and how many businesses make use of these added features.
Whichever direction they take it, you can be assured that Under One Cloud will be using it to its full potential to keep our customers safe.