The migration of on-premises workloads to the cloud has become an increasingly important aspect of digital transformation for organisations of all sizes. As businesses transition to cloud, they must ensure that their sensitive data and applications remain secure and protected from potential cyber threats. One of the key solutions that can help organisations achieve this is Microsoft Defender for Cloud.

Defender for Cloud is a comprehensive security management and threat protection service that helps organisations secure their on-premises workloads as they move to the cloud. Defender for Cloud is a crucial first step in securing on-premises workload migration to the cloud and it’s recommended that it be enabled on any workload that is migrated or created in Azure.

It also helps organisations maintain a strong security posture throughout the transition process, as the recommendations that Defender for Cloud provide ensures that deployments are made safely the first time. For those that are new to the cloud, Defender for Cloud over time can also be used as an education tool to bring organisations into the understanding of modern security practices, methods, and approaches.

The Role of Defender for Cloud in Securing On-Premises Workload Migration

Defender for Cloud provides a range of features and capabilities designed to help secure workloads as they’re migrated to the cloud. Some of the key functions of Defender for Cloud include:

Security Recommendations and Best Practices: Defender for Cloud helps identify and resolve potential security vulnerabilities in workloads by providing actionable security recommendations and best practices. This ensures that workloads are secure and compliant with industry standards before they are migrated to the cloud.

Continuous Security Monitoring: Defender for Cloud continuously monitors an organisation’s cloud and on-premises workloads, providing real-time visibility into their security posture. This allows for detecting and responding to potential threats quickly and effectively, minimising the risk of data breaches and other cyber-attacks.

Advanced Threat Protection: Defender for Cloud leverages advanced analytics and machine learning algorithms to identify and respond to sophisticated cyber threats. This helps detect and mitigate potential threats before they can cause significant damage to their cloud and on-premises workloads.

Secure DevOps Integration: Defender for Cloud integrates with popular DevOps tools, enabling organisations to incorporate security best practices into their development and deployment processes. This ensures that workloads are secure from the start and that security vulnerabilities are addressed throughout the migration process.

Benefits of Using Defender for Cloud in On-Premises Workload Migration

Utilising Defender for Cloud in the migration of on-premises workloads to the cloud offers several benefits, including:

Improved Security Posture: Defender for Cloud provides the necessary tools and insights needed to maintain a strong security posture throughout the migration process. By identifying and addressing potential vulnerabilities and threats, organisations can ensure that their workloads remain secure as they transition to the cloud.

Simplified Compliance: Defender for Cloud helps organisations meet regulatory compliance requirements by providing comprehensive reporting capabilities and enforcing security policies across cloud and on-premises workloads. This simplifies the process of demonstrating compliance and reduces the risk of non-compliance penalties.

Cost Savings: By leveraging Defender for Cloud’s advanced threat protection capabilities, risk of costly data breaches and cyber-attacks can be minimised. In addition, the integration of security best practices into DevOps processes can help save time and resources, ultimately reducing the overall cost of migration.

Greater Visibility and Control: Defender for Cloud offers greater visibility on cloud and on-premises workloads, providing necessary insights to make informed decisions about security. This enables organisations to maintain control over their workloads and ensure that they are protected from potential threats.

Defender for Cloud plays an essential role in securing on-premises workload migration to the cloud by providing the necessary tools and insights to maintain a strong security posture throughout the transition process. By leveraging Defender for Cloud, organisations can improve their security posture, simplify compliance, save costs, and maintain greater visibility and control over their workloads as they move to the cloud.

Learn more

• This article was written for the Monthly TechNet UK IT Pro Newsletter – sign up today!
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Security is critical to a company’s operations, as it protects its assets and data from cyber threats. However, the security labour shortage is a growing concern, as there needs to be more qualified professionals to fill the increasing demand for security roles.

Like many other companies, Microsoft faces challenges in finding and retaining qualified security professionals. The company has implemented various initiatives to address this issue, such as offering training and certification programs and partnering with educational institutions to develop a pipeline of qualified security professionals.

One of the key initiatives that Microsoft has implemented is the Microsoft Security Operations Analyst (SC-200) certification program. This program provides individuals with the skills and knowledge to become a security operations analyst and helps them to understand the various security tools and technologies used by Microsoft.

• Exam SC-200: Microsoft Security Operations Analyst
• SC-200: Mitigate threats using Microsoft 365 Defender
• SC-200: Mitigate threats using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
• SC-200: Mitigate threats using Microsoft Defender for Cloud
• SC-200: Create queries for Microsoft Sentinel using Kusto Query Language (KQL)
• SC-200: Configure your Microsoft Sentinel environment

Another key initiative is the Microsoft Security Operations Center (SOC) Academy, which offers training and certification programs for security professionals. The SOC Academy provides a range of courses, from entry-level to advanced, to help security professionals develop the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in the industry.

In addition to offering training and certification programs, Microsoft has partnered with educational institutions to develop a pipeline of qualified security professionals. For example, the company has partnered with the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) to create a cybersecurity curriculum for high schools and colleges. This partnership aims to educate students about the importance of cybersecurity and provide them with the skills and knowledge to pursue a career in the field.

Microsoft has also implemented several technologies and solutions to help address the security labour shortage. For example, the company has developed Microsoft Sentinel, a cloud-native security information and event management (SIEM) solution that provides real-time visibility into security threats and enables security professionals to respond quickly and effectively to incidents.

In conclusion, the security labour shortage is a growing concern for all of us. We implemented various initiatives to address this issue, such as offering training and certification programs, partnering with educational institutions, and implementing retention strategies. YOU are the solution. Get trained and get certified – the industry needs you.

Learn more

• This article was written for the Monthly TechNet UK IT Pro Newsletter – sign up today!
• Career Pivot: Endpoint Management to Security
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The post We ALL need more security professionals appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs - United Kingdom.

These days, security is a hot topic area for sure. As more and more colleagues talk about their exciting cyber stories over lunch and share them over TikTok, it becomes increasingly clear for many of the listeners that their old, mundane professional existence could possibly be stoked by a career change.

But, as many stories are told and as fascinating as they may be, here’s the rub – more security folks are needed. There’s a verified shortage.

There are many resources available to get started. Take, for example, a recent post from Vasu Jakkal, Corporate Vice President, Security, Compliance, Identity, and Management at Microsoft. The post, titled “The door is open for anyone to become a cyber defender”, relays a valuable list of resources for promoting learning and awareness of these opportunities including Microsoft’s cybersecurity jobs campaign, the Microsoft Cybersecurity Scholarship Program, Microsoft DigiGirlz, the Microsoft Learn for Educators program, LinkedIn Learning, Microsoft Learn, and more.

And this is just part of our efforts. There’s more from us, but there’s also a long list of other providers delivering content, workshops, college classes and others. An Internet search will expose all of these – the good and the bad.

The resources are endless, but it can be daunting learning something new – particularly if you’ve been employed in the same exact area for a long time.

I’ve been fortunate. My career has spanned over 2 decades and over half of that time was spent being deeply embedded in managing endpoints. I started working in Systems Management Server (SMS), then on to System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM), then Microsoft Endpoint Manager and Intune. Through all of this I’ve been a very public, very community-focused person. That led to me being known fairly well by people in that realm. It also afforded me the ability to share my expertise and knowledge through books, articles, blogs, and lots and lots of conferences (both virtual and in-person).

Many of those that have tracked my career have seen my evolution from endpoint manager to security person. So, when I’m recognised at conferences and during virtual events, I’m regularly asked about how I made my conversion. My answer is pretty clear, because for me it was a very easy transition.

If you’ve spent any time managing devices and users over your career, you are a very good prospect for a career in security. In fact, you are more likely to succeed than most. It’s a logical move. In the remainder of this article, allow me to substantiate this claim.

Same Old, Same Old

The same log files you use to verify compliance, identify troubled users, and use to troubleshoot bad applications, bad drivers, and bad devices are some of the same log files that are used to expose security threats. Same logs, different uses. Instead of finding that warning about a driver conflict, look for what that newly installed driver may have tried to accomplish after installation. That driver may not have been a driver at all. It could have been a uniquely disguised piece of malware.

Of course, there are tools to sift through and expose those security warnings for you, but your experience and knowledge of log structure and data research is key to making sure the correct data is highlighted. Understanding how logs work and how they flow gives you unique insights into how data creates a storyline of how an event takes place. This is important. In a modern security world, we are striving to work with storylines and timelines instead of just a series of seemingly unconnected occurrences. As an endpoint management person, you are regularly tasked with tying together disparate events for troubleshooting purposes.

Vast and Diverse Capability

I also know that those that have worked with endpoint and user management and monitoring for any length of time have some mad skills because they have to general knowledge over a lot of different things. Securing the workplace and the organisation’s electronic assets involves all the things.

I don’t know a single person that has ever worked with SCCM that doesn’t have vast knowledge in areas like:

1. Driver management
2. Networking
3. Software deployment and installation
4. Windows events
5. Windows workstation and Windows server
6. Security updates
7. Devices (Android and iOS)
8. SQL Server
9. User profiles and identity
10. Device compliance

And this list represents just the first ten I could think of – there’s plenty more. Think about what you do every single day. Consider that each of those areas – each of those things you’re skilled in – are part of a larger security story and it’s this type and level of knowledge that makes you a top candidate for a career in security.

Learn Here, Apply There

I don’t want to discount the resources provided in Vasu’s blog post; in fact, I’d like to bolster them. As someone interested in that next big thing, these resources are a great way to get started. Security (and cybersecurity) can be a whole new avenue to take what you already know and apply it somewhere else – possibly in an area that can reinvigorate you for the next half or more of your career.

It would make me so happy to hear from you at the next conference or webinar on how you rebooted and energised your career.

Learn more

• This article was written for the Monthly TechNet UK IT Pro Newsletter – sign up today!
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The post Career Pivot: Endpoint Management to Security appeared first on Microsoft Industry Blogs - United Kingdom.

There have been many times in my career when I felt it necessary to pivot. I can’t give you evidence of a strong indicator of why I felt that way, just that things needed to change. Sometimes it was a wholesale change; sometimes it was just a slight modification. But with each adaptation I’ve learned and grown, and I guess it worked because I’m still here, still in love with technology.

With all my accumulated years as a technology worker, it could have been a sort of technology awareness, knowing that I’d spent too many cycles in a focus area and that the area was almost spent. Maybe I was just in tune with the technological cosmos, but those times – when I’ve accepted them and reacted – have been some of the most monumental and rewarding.

Talking with others through my interactions at conferences, events and in communities, I know that many have also felt this tug throughout their career, but many even more recently. I believe we are at another one of these junction points. I’ve personally been trying to expand my scope of knowledge in areas where I’m uncomfortable and I know that my efforts will help me to grow again and stay a resilient technological citizen for even more years to come.

One of the best ways to approach this potential lane change is to delve into areas you’re not immediately comfortable with and locate available resources for learning. In doing so, you are much better able to identify the new lane you want to be in, and you’ll start to find new areas of interest. Pivoting doesn’t have to be torturous. Adding new expertise shouldn’t feel like a punishment. You’ll quickly identify a new area where you feel a new cosmic harmony. Find it and stick with it.

As a security person at Microsoft, I can tell you that security threads throughout everything you work with each day. If there were one single area I would propose you focus on, it would be security – particularly how the Microsoft Security platform integrates and interacts with your hybrid environment. This is a very good place to be right now and an awesome career path. And, while you may feel comfortable with the overall security for devices, applications, services and users you manage, building deeper knowledge in these areas is important and can help ease that hunger for change.

Here’s some recommended areas that might be slightly out of your comfort zone that you can use to test the waters:

• SC-200: Mitigate threats using Microsoft 365 Defender
• SC-300: Implement an identity management solution
• SC-400: Implement Information Governance in Microsoft 365
• Protect on-premises identities with Microsoft Defender for Cloud for Identity

Good luck in your endeavours and hopefully our cosmic technology paths will cross one day.

Learn more

• This article was written for the Monthly TechNet UK IT Pro Newsletter – sign up today!
• How to get started with Microsoft certifications
• A look at new Windows Server Hybrid certification
• New Azure features and functionality for April 2022

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