MISA expands portfolio and looks ahead during Microsoft Inspire

This blog post is part of the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association (MISA) guest blog series. Learn more about MISA.

Welcome to fiscal year 2022 (FY22) and my first official blog as the MISA Lead. It’s been a whirlwind couple of months getting up to speed with all things MISA—closing out FY21 while continuing to build on the great foundation my predecessor laid out as I strategize where to go from here. More to come on that, but first let’s take a moment to reflect and celebrate what MISA and our members have accomplished over the past year and take a sneak peek into what’s next.

MISA saw fantastic growth in FY21, having grown to more than 246 member companies, including 176 independent software vendors (ISVs) creating 259 integrations. We expanded to include managed security service providers (MSSPs) and now have 67 MSSP members providing 165 managed service offers. We also expanded the MISA product portfolio to include five new compliance products, increasing our footprint across more Microsoft technologies. And we’re excited to be bringing two more products into our portfolio, which we will discuss a little later in this blog. MISA’s growth is proof of the value we bring in helping customers better defend against increasingly sophisticated threats, and it demonstrates the value Microsoft Security sees in our partner community.

Have you seen the new look and feel of Microsoft Security? No? Yes? Well, be on the lookout—you’ll start to notice that MISA branding will be refreshed to align with the new look of Microsoft Security, emphasizing the strength of integrated solutions for a seamless user experience.

Exciting offer for MISA members

If you missed our last MISA office hours, MISA members can view the recording or the presentation available to the public. MISA members can request exam certification vouchers as part of their member benefits. Vouchers are only redeemable for Security, Compliance, and Identity (SCI) Fundamentals and Advanced Role Based (ARB) exams. MISA members can request vouchers per quarter, totaling four exam requests per Microsoft financial year.

MISA members, please email us for more information. Don’t miss the first quarter request deadline on July 20, 2021.

Bulletproof wins Microsoft Security Partner of the Year Award 2021

We are thrilled to announce that MISA member Bulletproof has been selected as the 2021 Security Partner of the Year. The Security Partner of the Year Award (POTYA) recognizes a partner who is doing an exceptional job of providing customers with end-to-end security solutions (versus one-point solutions) based on Microsoft Security, Compliance, and Identity capabilities in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Azure Security. With only one Security category for Partner of the Year, Bulletproof rose to the top among a field of more than 160 entries.

Headquartered in Canada, Bulletproof is an award-winning Gold Microsoft Partner with 12 Gold competencies and was recently inducted to MISA. Additionally, Bulletproof has achieved Microsoft’s Advanced Specialization in Threat Protection. The company has offices across Canada, the US, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) with users on six continents who trust Bulletproof to secure their identities, networks, data, and devices.

Bulletproof does an exceptional job of fostering trust in a Zero Trust world by providing customers with end-to-end solutions based on Microsoft security and compliance capabilities in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Azure. Their family of managed services includes Bulletproof 365 Enterprise (B365E), which combines Microsoft 365 Security, the strength of Azure Security, and Bulletproof’s security pedigree to provide a Zero Trust framework with two levels of all-day monitored security vigilance—proactive protection that stops threats before they happen and responsive security that automatically contains threats when they occur.

B365E enables customers to modernize and improve their security posture with cost-effective, seamless, and intelligent managed security and automated threat containment that doesn’t slow productivity. Bulletproof 365 Workplace integrates the power of Microsoft 365 cloud productivity solutions—wrapped with advanced cloud app security, unmatched employee education, and all-day IT support. The company’s latest addition, Bulletproof 365 Compliance, adds a managed information protection service to the company’s offerings.

A key differentiator for Bulletproof is their Microsoft SWAT Team, experts who meet with customers to directly handle questions about the technical details of proposed products and offerings, accelerating each customer’s journey to improved security. Tight alignment with Microsoft recently helped Bulletproof on a competitive win with a global real estate company looking for a best-of-breed solution.

“We’re still pinching ourselves to be perfectly honest,” said Chris Johnston, Bulletproof CEO. “Being recognized with the Security 2021 Microsoft Partner of the Year Award at the global level is an incredible honor that truly validates the significant impact Bulletproof’s end-to-end security solutions are having in driving value (and peace of mind) for Microsoft customers. Thank you, Microsoft, for your ongoing collaboration, inspiration and support, and this exciting and entirely humbling recognition. And to all the 2021 award winners, finalists, and partners at large who enabled and supported customers through the accelerated digital transformation we have seen this past year, we applaud you.”

Listen to the conversation with Chris Johnston, CEO of Bulletproof, and Phil Montgomery the new General Manager, Microsoft Security GTM.

Expanding the MISA product portfolio

We’re excited to share that we’ll be extending Azure Defender for IoT to include our managed security service providers (MSSPs). We’re also welcoming MSSPs supporting Microsoft Defender for Office 365.

Azure Defender for IoT to include MSSPs

Azure Defender for IoT provides agentless asset discovery, vulnerability management, and threat monitoring for IoT and Operation Technology (OT) environments, with flexible deployment options including fully on-premises, cloud-connected, or hybrid. It is tightly integrated with Azure Sentinel and supports third-party security operation center (SOC) tools including Splunk, IBM QRadar, and ServiceNow.

“Operational Technology is integral to many sectors and critical to those that support public services. By leveraging Defender for IoT and integrating it into the Microsoft Security ecosystem, we’re able to provide threat detection across the IT and OT boundaries without interrupting production systems. Bringing OT into the SOC allows work with our customers to protect their existing OT environments and help them embrace the cloud transformation, knowing that the services are secure and managed end-to-end. We are happy that Azure Defender for IoT has been extended to MSSPs in MISA, so we can gain product insights to extend solution capabilities of our managed services.”—Martin Riley, Director, Managed Security Services, Bridewell Consulting

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 to include MSSPs

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 provides integrated threat protection for all of Office 365, helping protect customers and their email and collaboration tools against advanced threats like business email compromise and credential phishing. MSSPs’ managed services for Microsoft Defender for Office 365 are now supported in MISA, streamlining the involvement of in-house security teams.

“Limited resources and rapidly evolving threats can create operational gaps for our clients. Optiv managed services provide outcome-based services across the security capabilities built into Microsoft 365 to protect vulnerable attack vectors. Incorporating Microsoft Defender for Office 365 in our solutions helps protect against email compromise, credential phishing, and more, so we can protect our clients’ businesses. We are pleased that Defender for Office 365 has joined the MISA family and look forward to increased visibility and co-marketing opportunities for our managed services.”—Justin Staffel, Director, Microsoft Alliance, Optiv Security, Inc.

Security, compliance, and identity at Microsoft Inspire

Microsoft Inspire kicks off today, and the security team will be there in full force. This year’s event will deliver a cross-cloud narrative embracing five themes:

1. Microsoft cloud enables digital transformation across industries.
2. Drive business growth with the most partner-focused business platform.
3. Evolving Microsoft cloud for a new world of work.
4. Innovate from cloud to edge on your terms.
5. Build a foundation of trust and security.

Security, compliance, identity, and management will be a key focal point of the event highlighted in the “Build on a foundation of trust and security” theme. Throughout the two-day event, we’ll demonstrate how our partners can grow their business by offering comprehensive solutions and earn customers’ trust by partnering with the leading security company.

Security, compliance, identity, and management sessions:

• One theme session.
• Four breakout sessions airing separately in both US and EMEA time zones.
• Eight “Ask the Experts” sessions are accompanied by a corresponding live Q&A session to be delivered immediately following.
• Three on-demand sessions: Each will become available July 14, 2021, at 10 AM following the delivery of the Day one keynote and can be watched at any time during or after the event.

Check out Corporate Vice President (CVP) Vasu Jakkal’s security, compliance, and identity blog to find out more.

Be sure to visit the Microsoft Inspire website and bookmark the following sessions:

Learn more

To learn more about MISA, watch this two-minute video or visit our website where you can find out more about the MISA program, product integrations, and locate MISA members. Visit the video playlist to learn about the strength of member integrations with Microsoft products.

To learn more about Microsoft Security solutions, visit our website. Bookmark the Security blog to keep up with our expert coverage on security matters. Also, follow us at @MSFTSecurity for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity.