Welcome to Episode 414 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast.This episode covers the major cloud service disruptions that impacted both AWS and Azure in October 2025. Even the biggest cloud providers face operational challenges. Learn what happened, how it was resolved, and what IT pros should keep in mind for future resilience planning. Your support makes this show possible! Please consider becoming a premium member for access to live shows and more. Check out our membership options. Show Notes Back to the Future: 40th Anniversary in IMAX [RESOLVED] Increased Error Rates and Latencies Azure Status History All Changes to Azure Frondoor Configuration are blocked currently. About the sponsors Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Happy World Passkey Day! As the world shifts from passwords to passkeys, we’re excited to join the FIDO Alliance in leaving “World Password Day” behind to celebrate the very first “World Passkey Day.” To commemorate this renaming, Microsoft and dozens of other organizations have taken the Passkey Pledge to work toward increasing the implementation and adoption of passkeys over the coming year. For Microsoft, taking the pledge continues our commitment to a future where every sign in is simple and secure. For detailed information on why passkeys are better than passwords, visit our website: What is a Passkey? Secure Signins | Microsoft Security The journey toward passwordless sign-in Ten years ago, Microsoft had a bold idea. Instead of signing in using clumsy and insecure passwords, what if you could simply smile? With this vision in mind, Microsoft introduced Windows Hello, a new way for users to securely sign in to their accounts with their face, fingerprint, or PIN. Windows Hello helped lay the foundation for an entirely new era of authentication.1 Today, more than 99% of people who sign into their Windows devices with their Microsoft account do so using Windows Hello. However, as the world and our digital lives evolved, it became clear that just signing into your device without a password isn’t enough. To keep your digital life safe, you need a way to sign into any account without a password. As part of an industry-wide effort, Microsoft has collaborated closely with the FIDO Alliance, and with platform partners to develop passkeys: a standards-based phishing-resistant authentication method that replaces passwords. Now you can sign in to any supported app or website with a passkey using your face, fingerprint, or PIN. Hundreds of websites, representing billions of accounts, now support signing in with a passkey. The world is changing! For a list of websites that support passkeys, visit Passkey Directory – FIDO Alliance. Over the past decade, we’ve observed two important, coinciding trends: people have grown increasingly accustomed to signing into their devices without passwords, and the number of password-based cyberattacks has increased dramatically. Bad actors know that the password age is ending, and that the number of easily compromised accounts is shrinking. In response, these bad actors are devoting considerable resources to automating brute force and phishing attacks against any account still protected by a password. Last year, we observed a staggering 7,000 password attacks per second (more than double the rate from 2023).2 As passkeys become the new standard, expect increased pressure from cyberattackers on any accounts still protected by passwords or other phishable sign-in methods. Our users love signing into their Microsoft accounts with passkeys Last year, we introduced passkey support for Microsoft accounts for our consumer apps and services like Xbox and Copilot, and now we see nearly a million passkeys registered every day. Because they’re not entering complex characters or one-time codes, users signing in with passkeys are three times more successful at getting into their account than password users (about 98% versus 32%). When you use a passkey, you get into your account much quicker too! Passkey sign-ins are eight times faster than a password and multifactor authentication. We believe that great usability and great security go hand in hand, so as we continue our transition to a passwordless world, we’re introducing some significant changes: * New sign-in user experience (UX): Earlier this year, we launched a new visual style that simplifies the sign-in and sign-up experience. The new design is modernized and streamlined and prioritizes passwordless methods for sign-in and sign-up.3 * New accounts are passwordless by default: As part of this simplified UX, we’re changing the default behavior for new accounts. Brand new Microsoft accounts will now be “passwordless by default.” New users will have several passwordless options for signing into their account and they’ll never need to enroll a password. Existing users can visit their account settings to delete their password. * Passwordless-preferred sign-in: We’re also making it simpler to sign in with safer options. Instead of showing you all the possible ways for you to sign in, we automatically detect the best available method on your account and set that as the default. For example, if you have a password and “one time code” set up on your account, we’ll prompt you to sign in with your one time code instead of your password. After you’re signed in, you’ll be prompted to enroll a passkey. Then the next time you sign in, you’ll be prompted to sign in with your passkey. This simplified experience gets you signed in faster and in our experiments has reduced password use by over 20%. As more people enroll passkeys, the number of password authentications will continue to decline until we can eventually remove password support altogether. Although passwords have been around for centuries, we hope their reign over our online world is ending. Billions of times a day, people all over the world sign into their accounts. According to the FIDO Alliance, more than 15 billion user accounts can now sign in using passkeys instead of passwords. But we need billions more to make every sign-in passwordless. So, to observe World Passkey Day, take the leap. Start by securing at least one of your accounts—ideally as many as you can—with a passkey. Protect your digital life from unauthorized access and make signing in faster, easier, and most importantly, more secure. To create a passkey for signing into your Microsoft account, visit here. If you’re using Windows, you can also learn how to save and manage passkeys here: Save a passkey in Windows – Microsoft Support Learn more with Microsoft Security 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. --- 1A breakthrough year for passwordless technology, Alex Simons. December 17, 2020. 2Microsoft Digital Defense Report 2024 3New user experience for customer authentication, Robin Goldstein. March 26, 2025. The post Pushing passkeys forward: Microsoft’s latest updates for simpler, safer sign-ins appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

Welcome to Episode 414 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast.This episode covers the major cloud service disruptions that impacted both AWS and Azure in October 2025. Even the biggest cloud providers face operational challenges. Learn what happened, how it was resolved, and what IT pros should keep in mind for future resilience planning. Your support makes this show possible! Please consider becoming a premium member for access to live shows and more. Check out our membership options. Show Notes Back to the Future: 40th Anniversary in IMAX [RESOLVED] Increased Error Rates and Latencies Azure Status History All Changes to Azure Frondoor Configuration are blocked currently. About the sponsors Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

In healthcare, patient trust often begins at the frontline with people who deliver care, respond to questions, and manage crucial in-the-moment decisions. Increasingly, those experiences are shaped by the tools frontline workers use. When devices are secure, responsive, and tailored to clinical workflows, they enable faster, more informed, and more compassionate care. For chief technology officers (CTOs), this raises important questions: How can frontline devices enhance productivity and responsiveness? And just as critically, how can organizations ensure those devices are secure, compliant, and ready to go at a moment’s notice? Healthcare isn’t alone in these challenges. Industries like retail, where frontline teams also engage directly with the public in fast-paced, high-stakes environments, face similar pressures around device management, security, and scalability. This blog focuses on how modern endpoint management supports care and delivery at the frontline, with parallel insights drawn from the retail world to highlight shared strategies and solutions. Learn how Microsoft Intune can help your organization securely manage frontline devices. Microsoft Intune Secure and manage every device from one place. Learn more Why endpoint management matters at the frontline Every frontline interaction is a potential brand moment that impacts trust and outcomes. A poor experience can ripple quickly, but the right tools in the hands of frontline staff can lead to faster, more personalized service. To deliver those experiences at scale, CTOs should consider three foundational principles for frontline device strategy: * Recognize that many devices are shared. With shift-based work, secure and seamless sign-on backed by a Zero Trust approach helps provide the right person access to the right tools, without delay. * Use a cloud-native approach to manage all devices. Whether company-issued or bring-your-own device (BYOD), cross-platform management keeps devices are up-to-date and ready to go, reducing setup times and support tickets. * Embrace innovations like Microsoft Copilot and Microsoft 365. AI-powered tools and Cloud PCs help organizations scale faster, enhance security, and give workers access to the latest experiences, without disruption. Now let’s explore what this looks like in practice, starting with healthcare. Healthcare in focus: Modern management for care delivery In healthcare, frontline workers rely on shared devices that must be secure, personalized, and compliant. Microsoft Intune has helped hospitals like Milton Keynes University Hospital implement endpoint management for shared tablets used in nurse stations—tools that support real-time monitoring and communication. Because staff rotate across shifts, easy sign-in is essential, and devices must only receive updates during defined maintenance windows. These shared tablets also require network restrictions and strict access controls to meet security standards without interrupting care. Intune also supports iPad OS and configuration, helping frontline staff access patient information quickly and securely at the bedside, reducing friction and improving the overall care experience. With AI-powered tools like Microsoft Copilot in Intune, healthcare IT teams can proactively identify issues, troubleshoot devices, and maintain compliance, all while reducing operational burden. As new AI agent capabilities emerge, they’ll enable even faster remediation of vulnerabilities, protecting sensitive patient data in an evolving cyberthreat landscape. And with Windows 365 Frontline, healthcare organizations can provide scalable, secure access to virtual desktops for rotating clinical staff, delivering performance without the need to deploy and manage a physical device for every user. Retail in focus: Elevating service and speed on the store floor In retail environments, every frontline interaction is a brand opportunity, and device performance can make or break that moment. At the National Retail Federation (NRF) conference in January 2025, companies like IKEA and Levi’s showcased how giving employees access to personalized devices helps them visualize products with customers and provide more tailored service. Retail staff often rely on shared devices across shifts, so it’s critical that sign-in is fast, interfaces are familiar, and access is secure but streamlined. Temporary session PINs and pre-configured apps let employees start working, and serving customers, immediately. At Schwarz Group (which includes 575,000 employees across 13,900 stores in 32 countries, including the Lidl and Kaufland retail brands) Intune supports staging and managing tens of thousands of employee devices. IT can remotely provision new devices with pre-defined configurations, eliminating time-consuming setups and ensuring tools are ready before the employee even logs in. Retailers can also take advantage of Windows 365 Cloud PCs and Windows 365 Frontline to give employees secure access to key tools across locations and shifts, while simplifying management and keeping costs down. Streamline and secure your device ecosystem with Microsoft Intune A better frontline experience leads to better outcomes Whether it’s a customer shopping in store or a patient receiving care, the frontline experience shapes how people perceive your organization. When frontline tools are secure, responsive, and tailored to the user, staff can serve with confidence—and people feel the difference. Now is the time to reassess your endpoint strategy. For healthcare organizations, secure, cloud-native device management can be one of the most powerful levers for improving patient outcomes and operational efficiency. And for industries with similar frontline demands, like retail, the same principles can deliver meaningful gains in speed, security, and customer satisfaction. Explore how other leading organizations are benefiting from modern, cloud-native endpoint management. For more, check out Intune’s recent “From the frontlines” blog for retail or for healthcare, or other examples of Intune customer stories. Learn more Learn more about Microsoft Intune. 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. The post Faster, more personalized service begins at the frontline with Microsoft Intune appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

According to the Microsoft 2024 Data Security Index, organizations experience an average of 156 data security incidents annually, and this cyberthreat continues to be a top concern for data security decision-makers.1 A full 82% of security decision-makers believe a comprehensive, fully integrated platform is superior to managing multiple isolated tools. Yet on average, teams are juggling 12 different data security solutions, creating complexity that increases their vulnerability.1 Also, as organizations increasingly turn to generative AI tools, the risk of sensitive data exposure or unauthorized use grows. This shift makes broad visibility into data risks across the digital landscape not only important—but essential. To effectively safeguard data in today’s environment, organizations need a robust and integrated data security strategy, bringing together data and user context across cloud apps, services, devices, AI tools, and more. Achieving this requires a holistic approach—one that unifies people, processes, and technology to protect what matters most. At Microsoft, we help empower data security leaders to keep their most valuable assets—data—safe, and now we’re publishing Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook. This guide is designed for data security leaders to initiate and enhance data security practices, leveraging the extensive experience of Microsoft subject matter experts (SMEs) and relevant customer insights. The guide aims to help customers efficiently and effectively implement data security with Microsoft Purview, maximizing the solution’s value by focusing on a integrated strategy. Learn more with Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook Stronger data security begins with a clear plan Data security is critically important and with the right approach, it doesn’t need to be overly complicated. As in the implementation of any technology, when securing data, proper preparation can help organizations avoid major roadblocks and realize greater efficiency and value going forward. The guide we’re sharing can help data security teams frame their goals and prioritize opportunities that are actionable, attainable, and can lead to quick wins—such as effective initial policies and greater organizational commitment to data security goals. Every organization faces unique data security challenges and have varying levels of risk tolerance. However, a universal struggle remains: balancing employee productivity with robust data security. This guide walks leaders through several key considerations for creating data security goals that integrate business objectives and compliance needs. It also provides insights on how to collaborate across the organization to understand the full scope of data security requirements and develop a cross-functional team of stakeholders. Lastly, preparation also includes defining what success will look like for your organization’s data security strategy. The guide helps leaders choose clear metrics for evaluating the effectiveness of their data security deployments with Microsoft Purview and includes examples of success metrics to consider. Additionally, the guide helps organizations focus on resolving their biggest data security risks first, while allowing the flexibility to modify, add, or change success metrics as challenges and maturity level change. Read the guide: Securing your data with Microsoft Purview Leveraging Microsoft Purview to secure your organization’s data Once organizations set goals and prioritize data security opportunities, it’s time to assess their environment and implement robust protections to secure their data. Teams today are under constant pressure to protect sensitive data from leaks, unintentional oversharing, insider cyberthreats and more—all while enabling collaboration and innovation. Businesses need tools to understand where their data is, who’s accessing it, and how it’s being used. With advanced detection and prevention capabilities, companies can identify potential risks before they become incidents—whether it’s an employee sharing confidential information externally or sensitive data being stored in the wrong location. By automating policy enforcement and surfacing actionable insights, companies can reduce human error, strengthen their data security posture, and respond swiftly to emerging cyberthreats, without disrupting everyday workflows. With Microsoft Purview, organizations can aim to establish a strong data security program by uncovering hidden risks to data throughout its lifecycle, safeguarding against data loss, and mitigating risks from both internal and external security incidents. To successfully leverage these capabilities, the guidance included in the asset walks us through a deeply integrated suite of products, ensuring a cohesive approach to data security. This practical guide will enable data security teams to get up to speed with Microsoft Purview’s integrated set of solutions and establish a strong data security program from the start. From understanding your organization’s data to developing policies that align with the business and compliance needs of your organization, there are several steps to take to ensure data security programs are better set up for success. This guide is designed to empower data security teams to confidently establish the right strategy to secure their organization’s data, from policy design to implementation, troubleshooting, and continual improvement—providing a comprehensive approach for organizations to prevent data risks. Discover more with Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook The next steps on your data security journey Once your organization has deployed Microsoft Purview and navigated the initial steps, you’ll be well poised to go deeper into adjacent opportunities and scenarios to further protect your organization. From empowering data security teams and deep-content investigation with the application of generative AI, to integrating data security into the Security Operations Center experience, continuing your data security journey with intentionality can lead to enhanced protection and operational efficiency. Looking across the other aspects of data within an organization is also crucial, as data compliance and data governance complement data security—ensuring comprehensive protection and management of data across its lifecycle, while meeting regulatory requirements and unlocking value creation from data. Securing your organization’s data is not just about implementing the right tools, but also about fostering a culture of security awareness and collaboration. By leveraging Microsoft Purview and following the best practices outlined in this guide, you can create a robust data security strategy that protects your valuable assets and supports your business objectives. Remember, data security is a continuous journey, and with the right approach, you can navigate it successfully. Download Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook and set up your organization for a successful implementation today. To learn more about our latest data security innovations, check out the Microsoft Secure announcement blog for more news across Microsoft Purview. Learn more with Microsoft Security 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. --- 1Microsoft 2024 Data Security Index: The Risk of AI, Threatscape. The post ​​Explore practical best practices to secure your data with Microsoft Purview​​ appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

Welcome to Episode 414 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast.This episode covers the major cloud service disruptions that impacted both AWS and Azure in October 2025. Even the biggest cloud providers face operational challenges. Learn what happened, how it was resolved, and what IT pros should keep in mind for future resilience planning. Your support makes this show possible! Please consider becoming a premium member for access to live shows and more. Check out our membership options. Show Notes Back to the Future: 40th Anniversary in IMAX [RESOLVED] Increased Error Rates and Latencies Azure Status History All Changes to Azure Frondoor Configuration are blocked currently. About the sponsors Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Happy World Passkey Day! As the world shifts from passwords to passkeys, we’re excited to join the FIDO Alliance in leaving “World Password Day” behind to celebrate the very first “World Passkey Day.” To commemorate this renaming, Microsoft and dozens of other organizations have taken the Passkey Pledge to work toward increasing the implementation and adoption of passkeys over the coming year. For Microsoft, taking the pledge continues our commitment to a future where every sign in is simple and secure. For detailed information on why passkeys are better than passwords, visit our website: What is a Passkey? Secure Signins | Microsoft Security The journey toward passwordless sign-in Ten years ago, Microsoft had a bold idea. Instead of signing in using clumsy and insecure passwords, what if you could simply smile? With this vision in mind, Microsoft introduced Windows Hello, a new way for users to securely sign in to their accounts with their face, fingerprint, or PIN. Windows Hello helped lay the foundation for an entirely new era of authentication.1 Today, more than 99% of people who sign into their Windows devices with their Microsoft account do so using Windows Hello. However, as the world and our digital lives evolved, it became clear that just signing into your device without a password isn’t enough. To keep your digital life safe, you need a way to sign into any account without a password. As part of an industry-wide effort, Microsoft has collaborated closely with the FIDO Alliance, and with platform partners to develop passkeys: a standards-based phishing-resistant authentication method that replaces passwords. Now you can sign in to any supported app or website with a passkey using your face, fingerprint, or PIN. Hundreds of websites, representing billions of accounts, now support signing in with a passkey. The world is changing! For a list of websites that support passkeys, visit Passkey Directory – FIDO Alliance. Over the past decade, we’ve observed two important, coinciding trends: people have grown increasingly accustomed to signing into their devices without passwords, and the number of password-based cyberattacks has increased dramatically. Bad actors know that the password age is ending, and that the number of easily compromised accounts is shrinking. In response, these bad actors are devoting considerable resources to automating brute force and phishing attacks against any account still protected by a password. Last year, we observed a staggering 7,000 password attacks per second (more than double the rate from 2023).2 As passkeys become the new standard, expect increased pressure from cyberattackers on any accounts still protected by passwords or other phishable sign-in methods. Our users love signing into their Microsoft accounts with passkeys Last year, we introduced passkey support for Microsoft accounts for our consumer apps and services like Xbox and Copilot, and now we see nearly a million passkeys registered every day. Because they’re not entering complex characters or one-time codes, users signing in with passkeys are three times more successful at getting into their account than password users (about 98% versus 32%). When you use a passkey, you get into your account much quicker too! Passkey sign-ins are eight times faster than a password and multifactor authentication. We believe that great usability and great security go hand in hand, so as we continue our transition to a passwordless world, we’re introducing some significant changes: * New sign-in user experience (UX): Earlier this year, we launched a new visual style that simplifies the sign-in and sign-up experience. The new design is modernized and streamlined and prioritizes passwordless methods for sign-in and sign-up.3 * New accounts are passwordless by default: As part of this simplified UX, we’re changing the default behavior for new accounts. Brand new Microsoft accounts will now be “passwordless by default.” New users will have several passwordless options for signing into their account and they’ll never need to enroll a password. Existing users can visit their account settings to delete their password. * Passwordless-preferred sign-in: We’re also making it simpler to sign in with safer options. Instead of showing you all the possible ways for you to sign in, we automatically detect the best available method on your account and set that as the default. For example, if you have a password and “one time code” set up on your account, we’ll prompt you to sign in with your one time code instead of your password. After you’re signed in, you’ll be prompted to enroll a passkey. Then the next time you sign in, you’ll be prompted to sign in with your passkey. This simplified experience gets you signed in faster and in our experiments has reduced password use by over 20%. As more people enroll passkeys, the number of password authentications will continue to decline until we can eventually remove password support altogether. Although passwords have been around for centuries, we hope their reign over our online world is ending. Billions of times a day, people all over the world sign into their accounts. According to the FIDO Alliance, more than 15 billion user accounts can now sign in using passkeys instead of passwords. But we need billions more to make every sign-in passwordless. So, to observe World Passkey Day, take the leap. Start by securing at least one of your accounts—ideally as many as you can—with a passkey. Protect your digital life from unauthorized access and make signing in faster, easier, and most importantly, more secure. To create a passkey for signing into your Microsoft account, visit here. If you’re using Windows, you can also learn how to save and manage passkeys here: Save a passkey in Windows – Microsoft Support Learn more with Microsoft Security 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. --- 1A breakthrough year for passwordless technology, Alex Simons. December 17, 2020. 2Microsoft Digital Defense Report 2024 3New user experience for customer authentication, Robin Goldstein. March 26, 2025. The post Pushing passkeys forward: Microsoft’s latest updates for simpler, safer sign-ins appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

In healthcare, patient trust often begins at the frontline with people who deliver care, respond to questions, and manage crucial in-the-moment decisions. Increasingly, those experiences are shaped by the tools frontline workers use. When devices are secure, responsive, and tailored to clinical workflows, they enable faster, more informed, and more compassionate care. For chief technology officers (CTOs), this raises important questions: How can frontline devices enhance productivity and responsiveness? And just as critically, how can organizations ensure those devices are secure, compliant, and ready to go at a moment’s notice? Healthcare isn’t alone in these challenges. Industries like retail, where frontline teams also engage directly with the public in fast-paced, high-stakes environments, face similar pressures around device management, security, and scalability. This blog focuses on how modern endpoint management supports care and delivery at the frontline, with parallel insights drawn from the retail world to highlight shared strategies and solutions. Learn how Microsoft Intune can help your organization securely manage frontline devices. Microsoft Intune Secure and manage every device from one place. Learn more Why endpoint management matters at the frontline Every frontline interaction is a potential brand moment that impacts trust and outcomes. A poor experience can ripple quickly, but the right tools in the hands of frontline staff can lead to faster, more personalized service. To deliver those experiences at scale, CTOs should consider three foundational principles for frontline device strategy: * Recognize that many devices are shared. With shift-based work, secure and seamless sign-on backed by a Zero Trust approach helps provide the right person access to the right tools, without delay. * Use a cloud-native approach to manage all devices. Whether company-issued or bring-your-own device (BYOD), cross-platform management keeps devices are up-to-date and ready to go, reducing setup times and support tickets. * Embrace innovations like Microsoft Copilot and Microsoft 365. AI-powered tools and Cloud PCs help organizations scale faster, enhance security, and give workers access to the latest experiences, without disruption. Now let’s explore what this looks like in practice, starting with healthcare. Healthcare in focus: Modern management for care delivery In healthcare, frontline workers rely on shared devices that must be secure, personalized, and compliant. Microsoft Intune has helped hospitals like Milton Keynes University Hospital implement endpoint management for shared tablets used in nurse stations—tools that support real-time monitoring and communication. Because staff rotate across shifts, easy sign-in is essential, and devices must only receive updates during defined maintenance windows. These shared tablets also require network restrictions and strict access controls to meet security standards without interrupting care. Intune also supports iPad OS and configuration, helping frontline staff access patient information quickly and securely at the bedside, reducing friction and improving the overall care experience. With AI-powered tools like Microsoft Copilot in Intune, healthcare IT teams can proactively identify issues, troubleshoot devices, and maintain compliance, all while reducing operational burden. As new AI agent capabilities emerge, they’ll enable even faster remediation of vulnerabilities, protecting sensitive patient data in an evolving cyberthreat landscape. And with Windows 365 Frontline, healthcare organizations can provide scalable, secure access to virtual desktops for rotating clinical staff, delivering performance without the need to deploy and manage a physical device for every user. Retail in focus: Elevating service and speed on the store floor In retail environments, every frontline interaction is a brand opportunity, and device performance can make or break that moment. At the National Retail Federation (NRF) conference in January 2025, companies like IKEA and Levi’s showcased how giving employees access to personalized devices helps them visualize products with customers and provide more tailored service. Retail staff often rely on shared devices across shifts, so it’s critical that sign-in is fast, interfaces are familiar, and access is secure but streamlined. Temporary session PINs and pre-configured apps let employees start working, and serving customers, immediately. At Schwarz Group (which includes 575,000 employees across 13,900 stores in 32 countries, including the Lidl and Kaufland retail brands) Intune supports staging and managing tens of thousands of employee devices. IT can remotely provision new devices with pre-defined configurations, eliminating time-consuming setups and ensuring tools are ready before the employee even logs in. Retailers can also take advantage of Windows 365 Cloud PCs and Windows 365 Frontline to give employees secure access to key tools across locations and shifts, while simplifying management and keeping costs down. Streamline and secure your device ecosystem with Microsoft Intune A better frontline experience leads to better outcomes Whether it’s a customer shopping in store or a patient receiving care, the frontline experience shapes how people perceive your organization. When frontline tools are secure, responsive, and tailored to the user, staff can serve with confidence—and people feel the difference. Now is the time to reassess your endpoint strategy. For healthcare organizations, secure, cloud-native device management can be one of the most powerful levers for improving patient outcomes and operational efficiency. And for industries with similar frontline demands, like retail, the same principles can deliver meaningful gains in speed, security, and customer satisfaction. Explore how other leading organizations are benefiting from modern, cloud-native endpoint management. For more, check out Intune’s recent “From the frontlines” blog for retail or for healthcare, or other examples of Intune customer stories. Learn more Learn more about Microsoft Intune. 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. The post Faster, more personalized service begins at the frontline with Microsoft Intune appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

According to the Microsoft 2024 Data Security Index, organizations experience an average of 156 data security incidents annually, and this cyberthreat continues to be a top concern for data security decision-makers.1 A full 82% of security decision-makers believe a comprehensive, fully integrated platform is superior to managing multiple isolated tools. Yet on average, teams are juggling 12 different data security solutions, creating complexity that increases their vulnerability.1 Also, as organizations increasingly turn to generative AI tools, the risk of sensitive data exposure or unauthorized use grows. This shift makes broad visibility into data risks across the digital landscape not only important—but essential. To effectively safeguard data in today’s environment, organizations need a robust and integrated data security strategy, bringing together data and user context across cloud apps, services, devices, AI tools, and more. Achieving this requires a holistic approach—one that unifies people, processes, and technology to protect what matters most. At Microsoft, we help empower data security leaders to keep their most valuable assets—data—safe, and now we’re publishing Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook. This guide is designed for data security leaders to initiate and enhance data security practices, leveraging the extensive experience of Microsoft subject matter experts (SMEs) and relevant customer insights. The guide aims to help customers efficiently and effectively implement data security with Microsoft Purview, maximizing the solution’s value by focusing on a integrated strategy. Learn more with Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook Stronger data security begins with a clear plan Data security is critically important and with the right approach, it doesn’t need to be overly complicated. As in the implementation of any technology, when securing data, proper preparation can help organizations avoid major roadblocks and realize greater efficiency and value going forward. The guide we’re sharing can help data security teams frame their goals and prioritize opportunities that are actionable, attainable, and can lead to quick wins—such as effective initial policies and greater organizational commitment to data security goals. Every organization faces unique data security challenges and have varying levels of risk tolerance. However, a universal struggle remains: balancing employee productivity with robust data security. This guide walks leaders through several key considerations for creating data security goals that integrate business objectives and compliance needs. It also provides insights on how to collaborate across the organization to understand the full scope of data security requirements and develop a cross-functional team of stakeholders. Lastly, preparation also includes defining what success will look like for your organization’s data security strategy. The guide helps leaders choose clear metrics for evaluating the effectiveness of their data security deployments with Microsoft Purview and includes examples of success metrics to consider. Additionally, the guide helps organizations focus on resolving their biggest data security risks first, while allowing the flexibility to modify, add, or change success metrics as challenges and maturity level change. Read the guide: Securing your data with Microsoft Purview Leveraging Microsoft Purview to secure your organization’s data Once organizations set goals and prioritize data security opportunities, it’s time to assess their environment and implement robust protections to secure their data. Teams today are under constant pressure to protect sensitive data from leaks, unintentional oversharing, insider cyberthreats and more—all while enabling collaboration and innovation. Businesses need tools to understand where their data is, who’s accessing it, and how it’s being used. With advanced detection and prevention capabilities, companies can identify potential risks before they become incidents—whether it’s an employee sharing confidential information externally or sensitive data being stored in the wrong location. By automating policy enforcement and surfacing actionable insights, companies can reduce human error, strengthen their data security posture, and respond swiftly to emerging cyberthreats, without disrupting everyday workflows. With Microsoft Purview, organizations can aim to establish a strong data security program by uncovering hidden risks to data throughout its lifecycle, safeguarding against data loss, and mitigating risks from both internal and external security incidents. To successfully leverage these capabilities, the guidance included in the asset walks us through a deeply integrated suite of products, ensuring a cohesive approach to data security. This practical guide will enable data security teams to get up to speed with Microsoft Purview’s integrated set of solutions and establish a strong data security program from the start. From understanding your organization’s data to developing policies that align with the business and compliance needs of your organization, there are several steps to take to ensure data security programs are better set up for success. This guide is designed to empower data security teams to confidently establish the right strategy to secure their organization’s data, from policy design to implementation, troubleshooting, and continual improvement—providing a comprehensive approach for organizations to prevent data risks. Discover more with Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook The next steps on your data security journey Once your organization has deployed Microsoft Purview and navigated the initial steps, you’ll be well poised to go deeper into adjacent opportunities and scenarios to further protect your organization. From empowering data security teams and deep-content investigation with the application of generative AI, to integrating data security into the Security Operations Center experience, continuing your data security journey with intentionality can lead to enhanced protection and operational efficiency. Looking across the other aspects of data within an organization is also crucial, as data compliance and data governance complement data security—ensuring comprehensive protection and management of data across its lifecycle, while meeting regulatory requirements and unlocking value creation from data. Securing your organization’s data is not just about implementing the right tools, but also about fostering a culture of security awareness and collaboration. By leveraging Microsoft Purview and following the best practices outlined in this guide, you can create a robust data security strategy that protects your valuable assets and supports your business objectives. Remember, data security is a continuous journey, and with the right approach, you can navigate it successfully. Download Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook and set up your organization for a successful implementation today. To learn more about our latest data security innovations, check out the Microsoft Secure announcement blog for more news across Microsoft Purview. Learn more with Microsoft Security 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. --- 1Microsoft 2024 Data Security Index: The Risk of AI, Threatscape. The post ​​Explore practical best practices to secure your data with Microsoft Purview​​ appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

Welcome to Episode 413 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. Microsoft has introduced a new file share-centric management model for Azure Files, aiming to eliminate the complexity of managing storage accounts. This model treats file shares as top-level Azure resources, allowing for easier automation, granular access control, and independent scaling. It also simplifies billing with transparent pricing and supports up to 1,000 file shares per subscription per region in the current preview. Your support makes this show possible! Please consider becoming a premium member for access to live shows and more. Check out our membership options. Show Notes Simplifying file share management and control for Azure Files Plan to deploy Azure Files Create an Azure file share with Microsoft.FileShares (preview) Scalability and performance targets for Azure Files Understand Azure Files billing models More questions? Reach out to [email protected] About our guest   Connect with Will Gries on LinkedIn   About the sponsors Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Happy World Passkey Day! As the world shifts from passwords to passkeys, we’re excited to join the FIDO Alliance in leaving “World Password Day” behind to celebrate the very first “World Passkey Day.” To commemorate this renaming, Microsoft and dozens of other organizations have taken the Passkey Pledge to work toward increasing the implementation and adoption of passkeys over the coming year. For Microsoft, taking the pledge continues our commitment to a future where every sign in is simple and secure. For detailed information on why passkeys are better than passwords, visit our website: What is a Passkey? Secure Signins | Microsoft Security The journey toward passwordless sign-in Ten years ago, Microsoft had a bold idea. Instead of signing in using clumsy and insecure passwords, what if you could simply smile? With this vision in mind, Microsoft introduced Windows Hello, a new way for users to securely sign in to their accounts with their face, fingerprint, or PIN. Windows Hello helped lay the foundation for an entirely new era of authentication.1 Today, more than 99% of people who sign into their Windows devices with their Microsoft account do so using Windows Hello. However, as the world and our digital lives evolved, it became clear that just signing into your device without a password isn’t enough. To keep your digital life safe, you need a way to sign into any account without a password. As part of an industry-wide effort, Microsoft has collaborated closely with the FIDO Alliance, and with platform partners to develop passkeys: a standards-based phishing-resistant authentication method that replaces passwords. Now you can sign in to any supported app or website with a passkey using your face, fingerprint, or PIN. Hundreds of websites, representing billions of accounts, now support signing in with a passkey. The world is changing! For a list of websites that support passkeys, visit Passkey Directory – FIDO Alliance. Over the past decade, we’ve observed two important, coinciding trends: people have grown increasingly accustomed to signing into their devices without passwords, and the number of password-based cyberattacks has increased dramatically. Bad actors know that the password age is ending, and that the number of easily compromised accounts is shrinking. In response, these bad actors are devoting considerable resources to automating brute force and phishing attacks against any account still protected by a password. Last year, we observed a staggering 7,000 password attacks per second (more than double the rate from 2023).2 As passkeys become the new standard, expect increased pressure from cyberattackers on any accounts still protected by passwords or other phishable sign-in methods. Our users love signing into their Microsoft accounts with passkeys Last year, we introduced passkey support for Microsoft accounts for our consumer apps and services like Xbox and Copilot, and now we see nearly a million passkeys registered every day. Because they’re not entering complex characters or one-time codes, users signing in with passkeys are three times more successful at getting into their account than password users (about 98% versus 32%). When you use a passkey, you get into your account much quicker too! Passkey sign-ins are eight times faster than a password and multifactor authentication. We believe that great usability and great security go hand in hand, so as we continue our transition to a passwordless world, we’re introducing some significant changes: * New sign-in user experience (UX): Earlier this year, we launched a new visual style that simplifies the sign-in and sign-up experience. The new design is modernized and streamlined and prioritizes passwordless methods for sign-in and sign-up.3 * New accounts are passwordless by default: As part of this simplified UX, we’re changing the default behavior for new accounts. Brand new Microsoft accounts will now be “passwordless by default.” New users will have several passwordless options for signing into their account and they’ll never need to enroll a password. Existing users can visit their account settings to delete their password. * Passwordless-preferred sign-in: We’re also making it simpler to sign in with safer options. Instead of showing you all the possible ways for you to sign in, we automatically detect the best available method on your account and set that as the default. For example, if you have a password and “one time code” set up on your account, we’ll prompt you to sign in with your one time code instead of your password. After you’re signed in, you’ll be prompted to enroll a passkey. Then the next time you sign in, you’ll be prompted to sign in with your passkey. This simplified experience gets you signed in faster and in our experiments has reduced password use by over 20%. As more people enroll passkeys, the number of password authentications will continue to decline until we can eventually remove password support altogether. Although passwords have been around for centuries, we hope their reign over our online world is ending. Billions of times a day, people all over the world sign into their accounts. According to the FIDO Alliance, more than 15 billion user accounts can now sign in using passkeys instead of passwords. But we need billions more to make every sign-in passwordless. So, to observe World Passkey Day, take the leap. Start by securing at least one of your accounts—ideally as many as you can—with a passkey. Protect your digital life from unauthorized access and make signing in faster, easier, and most importantly, more secure. To create a passkey for signing into your Microsoft account, visit here. If you’re using Windows, you can also learn how to save and manage passkeys here: Save a passkey in Windows – Microsoft Support Learn more with Microsoft Security 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. --- 1A breakthrough year for passwordless technology, Alex Simons. December 17, 2020. 2Microsoft Digital Defense Report 2024 3New user experience for customer authentication, Robin Goldstein. March 26, 2025. The post Pushing passkeys forward: Microsoft’s latest updates for simpler, safer sign-ins appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

Welcome to Episode 413 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. Microsoft has introduced a new file share-centric management model for Azure Files, aiming to eliminate the complexity of managing storage accounts. This model treats file shares as top-level Azure resources, allowing for easier automation, granular access control, and independent scaling. It also simplifies billing with transparent pricing and supports up to 1,000 file shares per subscription per region in the current preview. Your support makes this show possible! Please consider becoming a premium member for access to live shows and more. Check out our membership options. Show Notes Simplifying file share management and control for Azure Files Plan to deploy Azure Files Create an Azure file share with Microsoft.FileShares (preview) Scalability and performance targets for Azure Files Understand Azure Files billing models More questions? Reach out to [email protected] About our guest   Connect with Will Gries on LinkedIn   About the sponsors Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

In healthcare, patient trust often begins at the frontline with people who deliver care, respond to questions, and manage crucial in-the-moment decisions. Increasingly, those experiences are shaped by the tools frontline workers use. When devices are secure, responsive, and tailored to clinical workflows, they enable faster, more informed, and more compassionate care. For chief technology officers (CTOs), this raises important questions: How can frontline devices enhance productivity and responsiveness? And just as critically, how can organizations ensure those devices are secure, compliant, and ready to go at a moment’s notice? Healthcare isn’t alone in these challenges. Industries like retail, where frontline teams also engage directly with the public in fast-paced, high-stakes environments, face similar pressures around device management, security, and scalability. This blog focuses on how modern endpoint management supports care and delivery at the frontline, with parallel insights drawn from the retail world to highlight shared strategies and solutions. Learn how Microsoft Intune can help your organization securely manage frontline devices. Microsoft Intune Secure and manage every device from one place. Learn more Why endpoint management matters at the frontline Every frontline interaction is a potential brand moment that impacts trust and outcomes. A poor experience can ripple quickly, but the right tools in the hands of frontline staff can lead to faster, more personalized service. To deliver those experiences at scale, CTOs should consider three foundational principles for frontline device strategy: * Recognize that many devices are shared. With shift-based work, secure and seamless sign-on backed by a Zero Trust approach helps provide the right person access to the right tools, without delay. * Use a cloud-native approach to manage all devices. Whether company-issued or bring-your-own device (BYOD), cross-platform management keeps devices are up-to-date and ready to go, reducing setup times and support tickets. * Embrace innovations like Microsoft Copilot and Microsoft 365. AI-powered tools and Cloud PCs help organizations scale faster, enhance security, and give workers access to the latest experiences, without disruption. Now let’s explore what this looks like in practice, starting with healthcare. Healthcare in focus: Modern management for care delivery In healthcare, frontline workers rely on shared devices that must be secure, personalized, and compliant. Microsoft Intune has helped hospitals like Milton Keynes University Hospital implement endpoint management for shared tablets used in nurse stations—tools that support real-time monitoring and communication. Because staff rotate across shifts, easy sign-in is essential, and devices must only receive updates during defined maintenance windows. These shared tablets also require network restrictions and strict access controls to meet security standards without interrupting care. Intune also supports iPad OS and configuration, helping frontline staff access patient information quickly and securely at the bedside, reducing friction and improving the overall care experience. With AI-powered tools like Microsoft Copilot in Intune, healthcare IT teams can proactively identify issues, troubleshoot devices, and maintain compliance, all while reducing operational burden. As new AI agent capabilities emerge, they’ll enable even faster remediation of vulnerabilities, protecting sensitive patient data in an evolving cyberthreat landscape. And with Windows 365 Frontline, healthcare organizations can provide scalable, secure access to virtual desktops for rotating clinical staff, delivering performance without the need to deploy and manage a physical device for every user. Retail in focus: Elevating service and speed on the store floor In retail environments, every frontline interaction is a brand opportunity, and device performance can make or break that moment. At the National Retail Federation (NRF) conference in January 2025, companies like IKEA and Levi’s showcased how giving employees access to personalized devices helps them visualize products with customers and provide more tailored service. Retail staff often rely on shared devices across shifts, so it’s critical that sign-in is fast, interfaces are familiar, and access is secure but streamlined. Temporary session PINs and pre-configured apps let employees start working, and serving customers, immediately. At Schwarz Group (which includes 575,000 employees across 13,900 stores in 32 countries, including the Lidl and Kaufland retail brands) Intune supports staging and managing tens of thousands of employee devices. IT can remotely provision new devices with pre-defined configurations, eliminating time-consuming setups and ensuring tools are ready before the employee even logs in. Retailers can also take advantage of Windows 365 Cloud PCs and Windows 365 Frontline to give employees secure access to key tools across locations and shifts, while simplifying management and keeping costs down. Streamline and secure your device ecosystem with Microsoft Intune A better frontline experience leads to better outcomes Whether it’s a customer shopping in store or a patient receiving care, the frontline experience shapes how people perceive your organization. When frontline tools are secure, responsive, and tailored to the user, staff can serve with confidence—and people feel the difference. Now is the time to reassess your endpoint strategy. For healthcare organizations, secure, cloud-native device management can be one of the most powerful levers for improving patient outcomes and operational efficiency. And for industries with similar frontline demands, like retail, the same principles can deliver meaningful gains in speed, security, and customer satisfaction. Explore how other leading organizations are benefiting from modern, cloud-native endpoint management. For more, check out Intune’s recent “From the frontlines” blog for retail or for healthcare, or other examples of Intune customer stories. Learn more Learn more about Microsoft Intune. 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. The post Faster, more personalized service begins at the frontline with Microsoft Intune appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

Welcome to Episode 413 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. Microsoft has introduced a new file share-centric management model for Azure Files, aiming to eliminate the complexity of managing storage accounts. This model treats file shares as top-level Azure resources, allowing for easier automation, granular access control, and independent scaling. It also simplifies billing with transparent pricing and supports up to 1,000 file shares per subscription per region in the current preview. Your support makes this show possible! Please consider becoming a premium member for access to live shows and more. Check out our membership options. Show Notes Simplifying file share management and control for Azure Files Plan to deploy Azure Files Create an Azure file share with Microsoft.FileShares (preview) Scalability and performance targets for Azure Files Understand Azure Files billing models More questions? Reach out to [email protected] About our guest   Connect with Will Gries on LinkedIn   About the sponsors Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

According to the Microsoft 2024 Data Security Index, organizations experience an average of 156 data security incidents annually, and this cyberthreat continues to be a top concern for data security decision-makers.1 A full 82% of security decision-makers believe a comprehensive, fully integrated platform is superior to managing multiple isolated tools. Yet on average, teams are juggling 12 different data security solutions, creating complexity that increases their vulnerability.1 Also, as organizations increasingly turn to generative AI tools, the risk of sensitive data exposure or unauthorized use grows. This shift makes broad visibility into data risks across the digital landscape not only important—but essential. To effectively safeguard data in today’s environment, organizations need a robust and integrated data security strategy, bringing together data and user context across cloud apps, services, devices, AI tools, and more. Achieving this requires a holistic approach—one that unifies people, processes, and technology to protect what matters most. At Microsoft, we help empower data security leaders to keep their most valuable assets—data—safe, and now we’re publishing Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook. This guide is designed for data security leaders to initiate and enhance data security practices, leveraging the extensive experience of Microsoft subject matter experts (SMEs) and relevant customer insights. The guide aims to help customers efficiently and effectively implement data security with Microsoft Purview, maximizing the solution’s value by focusing on a integrated strategy. Learn more with Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook Stronger data security begins with a clear plan Data security is critically important and with the right approach, it doesn’t need to be overly complicated. As in the implementation of any technology, when securing data, proper preparation can help organizations avoid major roadblocks and realize greater efficiency and value going forward. The guide we’re sharing can help data security teams frame their goals and prioritize opportunities that are actionable, attainable, and can lead to quick wins—such as effective initial policies and greater organizational commitment to data security goals. Every organization faces unique data security challenges and have varying levels of risk tolerance. However, a universal struggle remains: balancing employee productivity with robust data security. This guide walks leaders through several key considerations for creating data security goals that integrate business objectives and compliance needs. It also provides insights on how to collaborate across the organization to understand the full scope of data security requirements and develop a cross-functional team of stakeholders. Lastly, preparation also includes defining what success will look like for your organization’s data security strategy. The guide helps leaders choose clear metrics for evaluating the effectiveness of their data security deployments with Microsoft Purview and includes examples of success metrics to consider. Additionally, the guide helps organizations focus on resolving their biggest data security risks first, while allowing the flexibility to modify, add, or change success metrics as challenges and maturity level change. Read the guide: Securing your data with Microsoft Purview Leveraging Microsoft Purview to secure your organization’s data Once organizations set goals and prioritize data security opportunities, it’s time to assess their environment and implement robust protections to secure their data. Teams today are under constant pressure to protect sensitive data from leaks, unintentional oversharing, insider cyberthreats and more—all while enabling collaboration and innovation. Businesses need tools to understand where their data is, who’s accessing it, and how it’s being used. With advanced detection and prevention capabilities, companies can identify potential risks before they become incidents—whether it’s an employee sharing confidential information externally or sensitive data being stored in the wrong location. By automating policy enforcement and surfacing actionable insights, companies can reduce human error, strengthen their data security posture, and respond swiftly to emerging cyberthreats, without disrupting everyday workflows. With Microsoft Purview, organizations can aim to establish a strong data security program by uncovering hidden risks to data throughout its lifecycle, safeguarding against data loss, and mitigating risks from both internal and external security incidents. To successfully leverage these capabilities, the guidance included in the asset walks us through a deeply integrated suite of products, ensuring a cohesive approach to data security. This practical guide will enable data security teams to get up to speed with Microsoft Purview’s integrated set of solutions and establish a strong data security program from the start. From understanding your organization’s data to developing policies that align with the business and compliance needs of your organization, there are several steps to take to ensure data security programs are better set up for success. This guide is designed to empower data security teams to confidently establish the right strategy to secure their organization’s data, from policy design to implementation, troubleshooting, and continual improvement—providing a comprehensive approach for organizations to prevent data risks. Discover more with Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook The next steps on your data security journey Once your organization has deployed Microsoft Purview and navigated the initial steps, you’ll be well poised to go deeper into adjacent opportunities and scenarios to further protect your organization. From empowering data security teams and deep-content investigation with the application of generative AI, to integrating data security into the Security Operations Center experience, continuing your data security journey with intentionality can lead to enhanced protection and operational efficiency. Looking across the other aspects of data within an organization is also crucial, as data compliance and data governance complement data security—ensuring comprehensive protection and management of data across its lifecycle, while meeting regulatory requirements and unlocking value creation from data. Securing your organization’s data is not just about implementing the right tools, but also about fostering a culture of security awareness and collaboration. By leveraging Microsoft Purview and following the best practices outlined in this guide, you can create a robust data security strategy that protects your valuable assets and supports your business objectives. Remember, data security is a continuous journey, and with the right approach, you can navigate it successfully. Download Securing your data with Microsoft Purview: A practical handbook and set up your organization for a successful implementation today. To learn more about our latest data security innovations, check out the Microsoft Secure announcement blog for more news across Microsoft Purview. Learn more with Microsoft Security 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. --- 1Microsoft 2024 Data Security Index: The Risk of AI, Threatscape. The post ​​Explore practical best practices to secure your data with Microsoft Purview​​ appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.

Happy World Passkey Day! As the world shifts from passwords to passkeys, we’re excited to join the FIDO Alliance in leaving “World Password Day” behind to celebrate the very first “World Passkey Day.” To commemorate this renaming, Microsoft and dozens of other organizations have taken the Passkey Pledge to work toward increasing the implementation and adoption of passkeys over the coming year. For Microsoft, taking the pledge continues our commitment to a future where every sign in is simple and secure. For detailed information on why passkeys are better than passwords, visit our website: What is a Passkey? Secure Signins | Microsoft Security The journey toward passwordless sign-in Ten years ago, Microsoft had a bold idea. Instead of signing in using clumsy and insecure passwords, what if you could simply smile? With this vision in mind, Microsoft introduced Windows Hello, a new way for users to securely sign in to their accounts with their face, fingerprint, or PIN. Windows Hello helped lay the foundation for an entirely new era of authentication.1 Today, more than 99% of people who sign into their Windows devices with their Microsoft account do so using Windows Hello. However, as the world and our digital lives evolved, it became clear that just signing into your device without a password isn’t enough. To keep your digital life safe, you need a way to sign into any account without a password. As part of an industry-wide effort, Microsoft has collaborated closely with the FIDO Alliance, and with platform partners to develop passkeys: a standards-based phishing-resistant authentication method that replaces passwords. Now you can sign in to any supported app or website with a passkey using your face, fingerprint, or PIN. Hundreds of websites, representing billions of accounts, now support signing in with a passkey. The world is changing! For a list of websites that support passkeys, visit Passkey Directory – FIDO Alliance. Over the past decade, we’ve observed two important, coinciding trends: people have grown increasingly accustomed to signing into their devices without passwords, and the number of password-based cyberattacks has increased dramatically. Bad actors know that the password age is ending, and that the number of easily compromised accounts is shrinking. In response, these bad actors are devoting considerable resources to automating brute force and phishing attacks against any account still protected by a password. Last year, we observed a staggering 7,000 password attacks per second (more than double the rate from 2023).2 As passkeys become the new standard, expect increased pressure from cyberattackers on any accounts still protected by passwords or other phishable sign-in methods. Our users love signing into their Microsoft accounts with passkeys Last year, we introduced passkey support for Microsoft accounts for our consumer apps and services like Xbox and Copilot, and now we see nearly a million passkeys registered every day. Because they’re not entering complex characters or one-time codes, users signing in with passkeys are three times more successful at getting into their account than password users (about 98% versus 32%). When you use a passkey, you get into your account much quicker too! Passkey sign-ins are eight times faster than a password and multifactor authentication. We believe that great usability and great security go hand in hand, so as we continue our transition to a passwordless world, we’re introducing some significant changes: * New sign-in user experience (UX): Earlier this year, we launched a new visual style that simplifies the sign-in and sign-up experience. The new design is modernized and streamlined and prioritizes passwordless methods for sign-in and sign-up.3 * New accounts are passwordless by default: As part of this simplified UX, we’re changing the default behavior for new accounts. Brand new Microsoft accounts will now be “passwordless by default.” New users will have several passwordless options for signing into their account and they’ll never need to enroll a password. Existing users can visit their account settings to delete their password. * Passwordless-preferred sign-in: We’re also making it simpler to sign in with safer options. Instead of showing you all the possible ways for you to sign in, we automatically detect the best available method on your account and set that as the default. For example, if you have a password and “one time code” set up on your account, we’ll prompt you to sign in with your one time code instead of your password. After you’re signed in, you’ll be prompted to enroll a passkey. Then the next time you sign in, you’ll be prompted to sign in with your passkey. This simplified experience gets you signed in faster and in our experiments has reduced password use by over 20%. As more people enroll passkeys, the number of password authentications will continue to decline until we can eventually remove password support altogether. Although passwords have been around for centuries, we hope their reign over our online world is ending. Billions of times a day, people all over the world sign into their accounts. According to the FIDO Alliance, more than 15 billion user accounts can now sign in using passkeys instead of passwords. But we need billions more to make every sign-in passwordless. So, to observe World Passkey Day, take the leap. Start by securing at least one of your accounts—ideally as many as you can—with a passkey. Protect your digital life from unauthorized access and make signing in faster, easier, and most importantly, more secure. To create a passkey for signing into your Microsoft account, visit here. If you’re using Windows, you can also learn how to save and manage passkeys here: Save a passkey in Windows – Microsoft Support Learn more with Microsoft Security 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 on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity. --- 1A breakthrough year for passwordless technology, Alex Simons. December 17, 2020. 2Microsoft Digital Defense Report 2024 3New user experience for customer authentication, Robin Goldstein. March 26, 2025. The post Pushing passkeys forward: Microsoft’s latest updates for simpler, safer sign-ins appeared first on Microsoft Security Blog.