Microsoft Defender XDR
Get full value from the Defender licences you already pay for.
Microsoft Defender often comes with your Microsoft 365 licences, then runs on defaults, with features switched off and alerts nobody reads. We roll out and tune Defender XDR across endpoints, email, identity and cloud apps, without breaking the applications the business depends on.
Start with a Microsoft 365 security assessment
What we roll out
- Defender for Endpoint: onboarding, attack surface reduction rules, EDR in block mode, tamper protection and device isolation
- Defender Vulnerability Management, with findings routed to owners
- Defender for Office 365: anti-phishing, Safe Links, Safe Attachments and attack simulation
- Defender for Identity, watching Active Directory for attacker behaviour
- Defender for Cloud Apps: shadow IT discovery, app governance and session controls
- Incident handling in the Defender portal, with automated investigation and response set to your comfort level
Without breaking line-of-business apps
Attack surface reduction rules and EDR in block mode are where rollouts usually cause trouble. Every rule runs in audit mode first, the results are reviewed with application owners, exclusions are kept narrow and documented, and enforcement is rolled out in rings.
How it runs
- Assess: licences, current configuration, coverage gaps and alert history.
- Design: policies, exclusions, automation levels and incident workflow.
- Pilot: audit mode across a representative group, then enforcement for IT.
- Roll out: enforcement in rings, with tuning after each ring.
- Hand over: incident runbooks, policies documented and alerts tuned so they are worth acting on.
Experience behind it
Before North Ark, our founder's work included Microsoft Defender for Endpoint implementations and Microsoft Sentinel and security operations engineering.
Questions buyers ask
Which licences include Defender?
Microsoft 365 Business Premium includes Defender for Business and Defender for Office 365 Plan 1. Microsoft 365 E5 includes the full Defender XDR suite. We map what you have to what you need.
Can Defender replace our current antivirus or EDR?
Often, yes. We plan the switch so there is no gap in protection and no clash between products during the move.
Who watches the alerts after rollout?
Your team, or North Ark under Managed Microsoft 365 and security, or our security operations centre around the clock.
Does this help with the Essential Eight?
Yes. Defender contributes to several strategies, including user application hardening, macro settings and patching evidence through vulnerability management.
Should we connect Defender to Sentinel?
If you use Sentinel, yes. Defender XDR incidents flow into Sentinel, where they can be correlated with other log sources.
Start a conversation
Turn on the protection you already own.
Tell us which Defender products you are licensed for.
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