Microsoft has announced that it will make certain security tools for their cloud services free, allowing their customers greater opportunities to analyze logs of activities within the services.
Microsoft’s decision comes after hackers believed to be from China gained access to emails from U.S. agencies. The tools that Microsoft is now releasing for free were previously priced at over $50 per user per month, which may have deterred some companies and agencies from using them.
Microsoft’s initial move to charge for tools that could be used to detect potential issues in their services received significant criticism after the Chinese hack was uncovered, as reported by Reuters. The tools that Microsoft is now offering for free will not protect companies and agencies from potential cyber intrusions.
However, these tools may make it easier to identify whether unauthorized individuals are attempting to access or already have access to their data.
Microsoft Purview Audit enables customers to centrally visualize cloud log data generated across their enterprise, thus helping them effectively respond to security events, forensic investigations, internal investigations and compliance obligations. Thousands of user and admin operations performed in dozens of Microsoft 365 services and solutions are captured, recorded and retained in customers unified Purview Audit logs.
–microsoft.com
