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Eliminate risk

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Use the completed data-flow diagram, answers from the security assessment, and existing security requirements to identify potential solutions to enterprise threats and security gaps.

In this example, we used many security services available in Azure.

Visit Microsoft cloud security benchmark to learn about each security category and associated requirements published for public use.

Access control

Issue	Solution
File access per user	Use role-based access control, which allows an administrator to grant access based on roles instead of specific employees. It makes it easier to grant, manage, and revoke access. If an individual employee needs access to a highly classified resource, use just-in-time access. It grants the employee access to the resource for a short period of time.
No MFA	Enable MFA across each SaaS offering. Integrate with Microsoft Entra Connect for hybrid identities where applicable.
No password or group policy	Configure security policy settings for all endpoints with group policy or Microsoft Entra Domain Services.
No shared account protection	Avoid using shared accounts wherever possible. If engineering teams require a service account as part of automation or engineering, use group managed service accounts.
No dedicated administrator account use	Use Microsoft Identity Manager for on-premises or Microsoft Entra ID Privilege Identity Management for cloud privileged access management.
Decentralized identities	Integrate each SaaS offering with Microsoft Entra Connect for hybrid identities where applicable. Rotate passwords on all service accounts.

Secure development

Issue	Solution
No SDL practices found	Implement Microsoft SDL, operational security assurance, and secure devops practices. Move all development to cloud build servers, like GitHub enterprise, which can be used on-premises and on the cloud. It also has valuable security features.

Business continuity

Issue	Solution
Unencrypted backup	Use Azure backup, which has a robust set of features, including encryption. Azure SQL transparent data encryption can be used too.
No business continuity plan	Use Azure paired regions and Azure Virtual Desktop on workstations.
No disaster recovery plan	Use Azure Site Recovery.
No tests or audits	Follow Azure backup guidance.

Cryptography

Issue	Solution
Use of self-signed certificates on dev environment	Use Azure Directory Services to manage your on-premises Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and Azure Key-Vault to manage APIs, passwords, certificates, and other secrets.
No key rotation	Use Azure Key-Vault for key rotation.

Asset management

Issue	Solution
No data retention policy	Use Azure data retention practices and Azure time series insights. You may also need to create a security policy for the enterprise highlighting how long to keep each resource. Use long-term retention with Azure SQL.
No data classification or labeling	Use Azure data discovery & classification, Azure information protection for emails and documents. Also, Microsoft Purview, and built-in capabilities in Azure SQL Database, like dynamic data masking. Also, check out data security and encryption guidance
No folder restrictions	Assign file level permissions using role-based access control.
No asset disposal or deprecation plan	Use Azure inventory and asset management guidelines to come up with an asset disposal or deprecation plan.
No data encryption on shared drives and servers	Follow data encryption guidance.
No Data Loss Prevention (DLP)	Use data loss prevention compliance guidelines.
NAS used for both backups and file shares	First, separate the NAS by either migrating file shares completely to OneDrive, or adding a secondary NAS just for file sharing. You may also use Azure backup for your backup needs.
OneDrive not fully adopted	Develop and enforce timelines to give teams time to move their files. You may also use the migration center tool. Share the adoption guidelines with teams.
No disk encryption on enterprise machines	Follow data encryption guidance.
No station lock policy	Enforce Azure group policy.

Legal

No other action needed.

Incident response

Issue	Solution
No incident response program for enterprise or product	Use Azure incident response guidance to create an incident response program for the enterprise and its product offerings.

Network

Issue	Solution
No network segmentation	Segment the network into multiple subnets. If needed, consider adding a perimeter network to secure more sensitive resources. Visit segmentation strategies for information on segmenting your infrastructure in Azure.
No custom firewall rules	Harden firewall rules by identifying and setting only outbound rules. Check out firewall design guidelines and consider implementing a firewall in Azure using a hub vnet.
Weak VPN authentication mechanism	Connect to Azure using a site-to-site VPN. Upgrade your VPN to a validated device. Check out the Azure VPN gateway service. Most importantly, enforce a zero-trust mindset across the company and secure workstation connections with VPN.
Limited data encryption	Enforce secure communication protocols in Azure, like TLS 1.2.

Operations

Issue	Solution
No automated process for security patches and updates	Use Automatic VM guest patching for Azure VMs or Microsoft Intune. Integrate with Microsoft Defender for Cloud for the ultimate protection.
No Antivirus (AV) enforcement	Use Microsoft Defender for Endpoint for advanced threat protection.
No timeout session enforcement on machines	Enforce Azure group policy.
No Mobile Device Management (MDM) solution	Implement Microsoft Configuration manager, which includes solutions like Microsoft Intune. It manages and monitors mobile devices, desktop computers, virtual machines, embedded devices, and servers.
Limited logging and monitoring	Use Azure Monitor Log analytics and follow Azure logging guidelines.
No intelligence platform or analytics service	Use Microsoft Sentinel, Microsoft's Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solution.
Limited logging history	Follow Azure logging guidelines.

Physical and environmental

Issue	Solution
IT room is unlocked	Add a lock to the IT room. Examples include lock and key, code entry, and key fobs. As you continue with your investigation, consider adding a lock that also provides a logging mechanism to keep track of traffic.
No cameras or access records for the IT room	Consider adding a camera pointed directly at the IT room. It works well if combined with a lock that keeps a log of all entries.
Building owner has access to all rooms and floors	Depending on the contract signed by the company, consider excluding access to the IT room. If that's not possible, add locked cages to the network equipment to prevent unauthorized access.
No building cameras or guards	Consider adding cameras pointed at each exit. If not already implemented, add doors that automatically lock upon exit.
No formal visitor registration process	Create a logging system to keep track of all visitors, their sponsors, and reason for visit. Consider using visitor badges to distinguish them from employees.

Governance

Issue	Solution
No information security policy	Create an information security policy by using the Azure governance guidelines.
No risk management program	Create risk management program by using the Azure governance guidelines.
No security training	Consider using Microsoft end-user security awareness training as the starting point for your training program. The IT security team should also consider certifications available from Microsoft Learn, like the Security administrator associate.

Security architecture

Issue	Solution
No secure template images	Create a set of templates to be used on each VM, server, and user machine. Use Azure architecture guidelines or Azure VM builder.
No security baselines	Create a set of security baselines for each OS and its security configuration. Use Azure architecture guidelines, Azure security baselines, and Azure blueprints.
No formal audit to ensure hybrid infrastructure security	Follow the guidance provided by Azure best practices and patterns.
No human operated ransomware protection plan	Review the human operated ransomware guide, which contains information on securing your privileged access to sensitive resources. Check out how to deploy a secure, Azure-managed workstation.

Supplier

Issue	Solution
No supplier management program	Consider using a supplier management questionnaire as the basis for your supplier program.

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