Secure Azure AD: Top 6
Top 6 practices to secure your Azure Active Directory.
Securing Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) is critical to protecting your organization's identity and access management system. Here are some best practices to follow:
- Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA): MFA adds an additional layer of security by requiring users to provide two or more forms of authentication. This can include something they know (like a password) and something they have (like a mobile device). Enabling MFA for all users is one of the most effective ways to prevent unauthorized access to Azure AD. Going passwordless might even be the route you should be going down but it depends on the organization. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/authentication/concept-authentication-passwordless?culture=en-us&country=us
- Use conditional access policies: Conditional access policies allow you to define conditions that must be met before a user is granted access to Azure AD. For example, you can require MFA for users accessing Azure AD from outside the organization's network or for users accessing sensitive data. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/conditional-access/overview?culture=en-us&country=us
- Limit administrative access: Limit the number of users who have administrative access to Azure AD, and ensure that administrative accounts have strong passwords and are protected by MFA.
- Enable auditing and logging: Enable auditing and logging to monitor and track access to Azure AD. This can help detect and investigate potential security incidents. Identity Protection is top priority. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/identity-protection/overview-identity-protection?culture=en-us&country=us
- Regularly review and update security configurations: Regularly review and update security configurations, including authentication methods, conditional access policies, and administrative access. This can help ensure that Azure AD is configured in a way that aligns with your organization's security requirements.
- Follow security best practices for applications and services that integrate with Azure AD: Ensure that applications and services that integrate with Azure AD follow security best practices. This can include requiring MFA for application access and implementing secure coding practices.
Overall, securing Azure AD requires a multi-layered approach that includes implementing MFA, using conditional access policies, limiting administrative access, enabling auditing and logging, regularly reviewing security configurations, and following security best practices for applications and services that integrate with Azure AD.
Read more about Azure AD here:
Azure Active Directory | Microsoft Azure
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