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What are the security features of the Microsoft Business Standard license?

The Microsoft 365 Business Standard license offers a balanced set of features for organisations that need a comprehensive suite of productivity tools along with robust security capabilities.

It doesn’t have the more advanced security options available in Business Premium, it still provides strong protection for smaller to medium-sized businesses.

Here are the key security features included in the Microsoft 365 Business Standard license:

1. Exchange Online Protection (EOP)

  • Spam and Malware Filtering: Provides protection against spam, malware, and phishing emails by automatically blocking malicious attachments and messages.
  • Anti-Phishing Protection: Helps identify and block phishing attacks and impersonation attempts using machine learning and heuristics.
  • Safe Links: Scans URLs in email messages to ensure they are safe to click and blocks any harmful links.
  • Safe Attachments: Scans email attachments in real-time to detect potentially harmful files and prevents them from reaching the user's inbox.

2. Microsoft Defender for Office 365 (Basic)

  • Safe Attachments: Scans email attachments for malicious content before they reach the recipient.
  • Safe Links: Protects users by scanning links in email messages and Office documents, blocking unsafe URLs to prevent access to malicious sites.
  • Anti-Phishing: Detects and blocks phishing attempts, including impersonation and spoofing emails.

3. Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) Basic

  • Identity Protection: Provides essential identity management and security features such as single sign-on (SSO) to access apps and services.
  • Password Management: Allows administrators to manage password policies, helping ensure strong, secure passwords.
  • Conditional Access (Limited): Enables basic conditional access to resources based on user, device, or location, though more advanced policies are available in higher-tier plans.
  • Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Adds an additional layer of security by requiring users to verify their identity with a second factor, such as a phone or authenticator app.

4. Mobile Device Management (MDM)

  • Basic MDM for Office 365: Enables basic management of mobile devices that access company data. Admins can enforce security policies such as password requirements, device encryption, and remote wipe.
  • Mobile Application Management (MAM): Secures apps on mobile devices, restricting or wiping corporate data in case of a security breach.

5. Data Loss Prevention (DLP)

  • Basic DLP Policies: Helps prevent the accidental sharing of sensitive information by automatically scanning for personal or confidential data, such as credit card numbers, Social Security numbers, or protected health information (PHI).
  • Policy Enforcement: DLP policies can be configured to restrict sharing, block access, or alert administrators when sensitive data is accessed or shared improperly.

6. Information Protection

  • Microsoft Information Protection (Basic): Helps secure sensitive documents and emails by applying sensitivity labels (e.g., "Confidential", "Internal") that control access and sharing.
  • Rights Management: Allows you to apply encryption to documents and restrict certain actions like forwarding or copying, enhancing document-level security.

7. Compliance and Reporting

  • Audit Logs: Tracks user activities across the Microsoft 365 environment, enabling organizations to monitor and review potentially suspicious or non-compliant behavior.
  • Security & Compliance Center: Provides a centralised location for managing and overseeing compliance-related tasks, including audit logs, retention policies, and data governance.

8. Encryption

  • Email Encryption: Provides encryption for outgoing emails containing sensitive information, ensuring that unauthorized parties cannot read the content.
  • BitLocker (Windows Devices): While available primarily on Business Premium and higher, encryption on Windows devices can help secure sensitive data in the event of theft or loss.

9. Basic Security Reports

  • Security Reports & Insights: Administrators have access to basic security insights and reports to understand potential threats and vulnerabilities in their environment, including phishing attempts, malicious emails, and other suspicious activity.

10. Microsoft Teams Security

  • Collaboration Protection: Teams provides secure communication and file sharing with built-in encryption, secure guest access controls, and compliance with industry regulations.
  • Guest Access Controls: Admins can set permissions for guest users, ensuring that sensitive corporate data is only accessible to authorised people.
  • Teams Information Protection: Protects messages, files, and meetings through various policies like sensitivity labeling and data loss prevention.

11. Device Security

  • Windows Defender Antivirus: Provides real-time protection against malware, viruses, and other malicious threats on Windows devices.
  • Endpoint Protection: Business Standard includes essential security features to protect against threats on desktops and mobile devices, though more advanced endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools are available in Business Premium.

12. Security and Privacy Features for OneDrive and SharePoint

  • File Encryption: OneDrive for Business and SharePoint Online store files with encryption both at rest and in transit.
  • Version History: Users can restore previous versions of documents to protect against accidental deletion or corruption.
  • Access Controls: Administrators can set permissions and access controls on files and folders to ensure that only authorised users can view or edit sensitive information.

13. Backup and Recovery

  • File Recovery: OneDrive for Business offers version history and recycle bin features, allowing users to recover files and restore previous versions of documents.
  • SharePoint Online: Similar to OneDrive, SharePoint allows for versioning and file restoration to help mitigate the risks of accidental data loss or tampering.

14. Security Updates

  • Automatic Updates: Regular and automatic updates help ensure that security patches and improvements are applied to applications like Office apps, Exchange, Teams, and more.

Conclusion

The Microsoft 365 Business Standard license offers a strong foundation of security features, including essential protection for email, data, identities, devices, and cloud collaboration tools. It is ideal for businesses that need basic security controls and governance tools without the full advanced features offered in Business Premium.

For businesses that need additional protection, such as advanced endpoint security, enhanced device management, and more sophisticated compliance features, Business Premium would be a better fit. However, for many organisations, Business Standard provides a robust and effective security environment for everyday use.