Knowledge base

September 14, 2024

Microsoft Purview Audit: Detecting Bad Behavior in Microsoft 365

Microsoft Purview Audit provides companies with a powerful tool to detect and monitor suspicious activity within their Microsoft 365 environment.
This tool is an essential component for organizations looking to meet their security and compliance requirements.

What is Microsoft Purview Audit? πŸ€”

Microsoft Purview Audit is an auditing tool that helps companies monitor activities of users within various Microsoft 365 services, such as Exchange Online, SharePoint, Teams and OneDrive.
It provides in-depth insight into user usage and potential misuse of these cloud services.

Key Benefits πŸ’‘

  1. Detailed Logging of Activities πŸ“Š Microsoft Purview Audit keeps detailed logs of every action taken within the Microsoft 365 environment.
    This allows IT teams to have a complete record of who did what, when, and from what device.
    Examples include:

    • Deletion or modification of files πŸ“‚
    • Changes in permissions or access to sensitive information πŸ”’
    • Suspicious notifications from unusual locations 🌍
  2. Identify Suspicious Activity 🚨 Purview Audit allows IT administrators to quickly notice unusual behavior, such as multiple failed login attempts or suspicious access to sensitive files.
    As a result, potential security incidents can be detected and addressed early.
  3. Compliance and Security βœ… Companies often need to comply with strict regulations, such as GDPR or ISO standards.
    With Purview Audit, organizations can easily verify that all operations within the Microsoft 365 environment are compliant.
    This prevents costly fines and reputational damage from data breaches.
  4. Comprehensive Search Functionality πŸ” One of Purview Audit’s greatest strengths is its powerful search function that allows IT teams to easily filter specific events.
    This significantly speeds up incident detection, which is crucial in the case of potential security breaches.
  5. Automatic Reporting πŸ“ The system can generate automatic reports of suspicious activity and policy changes, making it easier for companies to ensure transparency and accountability to internal stakeholders and external regulators.

Sample scenario: what can Purview Audit do for you? 🌟

Imagine an employee who may have gained unauthorized access to sensitive corporate data in SharePoint.
With Purview Audit, IT teams can:

  • See when this employee was granted access to the files.
  • Check which files have been modified or downloaded.
  • View from which device and IP address this access was granted.

This helps IT teams not only solve the problem, but also take appropriate action, such as revoking access or strengthening security protocols.

Conclusion 🎯

Microsoft Purview Audit is an indispensable tool for any company looking to strengthen its security and stay compliant with international regulations.
With powerful features such as detailed logging, suspicious activity detection and automatic reporting, this tool helps minimize risk and identify problems quickly.

Want to know more?

Get in touch
Microsoft Purview Audit in action