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10 Microsoft Azure Active Directory Features You Need To Use

With the almost overwhelming amount of apps, accounts and tools required by users, there needs to be a unified solution.

Luckily for us, there is — Microsoft Azure Active Directory [AD].

Azure AD is used by many organisations across the globe, but like most IT solutions, people are not exploiting its vast benefits.

In this guide we will explore 10 Microsoft Azure AD features that are truly game changing. They include untapped tricks around branded tenancy, to the gift that is MyApps.

Before we dive into the deep end, let’s start from the beginning [feel free to jump straight to the features beneath]…

Microsoft Azure AD is a cloud-based directory that enables a secure, identity driven, multi-tenant management of users.

In short — it becomes the hub of user access.

This access covers various different elements, whether that be data, devices or locations.

Here’s the kicker:

While it is easy to think that such systems are only utilised by the few tech giants of this world. In fact every Office 365, Azure and Dynamics CRM tenant is actually already accessing Azure AD. This means that you have the base to integrate it with your entire infrastructure.

So, without further or do, here at the 10 Azure AD features you may be missing out on:

Firstly, we look to one of the more commonly known features — Azure AD business-to-business (B2B) collaboration.

This enables any organization using Azure AD to securely work with other companies, no matter their size. As such, these business can provide access to documents, apps and more, while ensuring control over corporate data. When you consider that the alternative solution would be to provide case by case access, this is very helpful.

Similarly to the B2B capabilities of Azure AD, the B2C functionality offers that same scale, reliability and availability, however, this is for your customer-facing applications.

In reality, with the common use of similar personal and business related passwords, this is a significant priority.

The cost of password resets to an organisation is not only an incredible waste of time, it is actually a very solvable solution.

In addition, you have the time taken for IT to respond to such, thus, an inevitable loss of revenue will incur.

Specifically, when this occurs at a management level, where their hourly wage is greater, both the direct and indirect costs are significant.

However, with a well designed Azure AD, you enable users to self help. In view of maintaining a high level of security, you can control where, and how they are able to do so.

You’d be amazed how many companies don’t do this.

But in reality, it can become an extra step required if a hacker wants to spoof you for your credentials.

Through the very simple implementation of a logo and branded imagery, companies can make it that bit more difficult for generic spam emails to entice users to provide details.

This feature can be implemented company-wide with almost no effort, and could prevent a nasty gateway.

As you can see in the password reset image above, Microsoft AD makes it very easy for you to add various security elements to your account.

This means that enabling multi-factor authentication [MFA] can become a very easy step for both new and existing users to exercise.

While MFA has been possible for a few years, the granular detail of Active Directory means that you can enforce it in more risky circumstances [such as when outside the office], but disable it when connected to the network.

While traditionally you would have to assign specific rights on a user-by-user base, the advantage of a well remediated AD is that user groups can make things far easier.

Especially in the context of devices.

Whether you have the dilemma of work devices vs personal devices, or by delineating between different platforms, Azure AD has great control.

A great example of this would be down to the level of information — let’s say for example a company Intranet. An IT department is able to decide that senior management is allowed to access that information, not matter what device, with a secure sign in.

However, more confidential data, such as HR, can only be accessed on a work device, in these countries, with the ability to copy, but not print.

The conditional based requirements noted above are really why most of the largest companies in the world use Azure AD.

Equally, it is probably something that your organisation is probably not exploiting to its fullest.

Despite IT’s need to confidently enact large scale changes are important, it is equally essential that these high profile accounts are minimised.

Part of PIM ensures that you can issue a work-flow, and provide temporary admin. Equally, you can limit the possibility for credentials to be hacked through requiring MFA and/ or manager approval.

As such, PIM enables you to create reports of administrator history, or enable varying degrees of authority, these could be:

With all the various access that is noted above, there will be many different logins that take place daily.

This means that all sign-in attempts are carefully monitored, whereby you can set alerts, or even block access to accounts upon a series of failures, or suspicious behaviour.

This hub enables quick access to a vast amount of organisation and Azure approved applications. These can include Wunderlist, or Concur.

Yes, this reduces the need for users to create simple, replicable passwords across their personal and business accounts, but more importantly, it also makes their process that much simpler, thus encouraging them to use the technology.

For the more technical audience out there, it also contains your BitLocker Key.

Well there you go, there is our high level introduction and 10 under-utilised features of Microsoft Azure AD.

To make it nice and convenient here is a simple list:

We hope that these various Microsoft Azure AD features enable you to create a more secure, and collaborative workforce.

We’d love to hear how your thoughts on these features, or if you have any further questions. Feel free to drop us a comment below.

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