Enterprise IoT security with Defender for IoT now included in Microsoft 365 E5 and E5 Security plans

In this evolving digital landscape, more organizations are adopting enterprise IoT (eIoT) to streamline their business processes. According to Transforma Insights, IoT connections are expected to double to 30 billion by 2030¹. The surge in IoT adoption is expected to outnumber IT devices 3:1 by 2025² and expand the attack service exponentially. Organizations need a security solution that evolves with their existing endpoint security investments and empowers the SOC to secure IT and eIoT devices centrally.

To help organizations achieve a more holistic endpoint security strategy that traverses both IT and eIoT devices easily, we are thrilled to announce that the eIoT security capabilities of Microsoft Defender for IoT are now included with Microsoft 365 E5 and E5 Security plans at no additional cost for new and existing customers.

This will enable security teams to:

• Eliminate critical blind spots by discovering unmanaged enterprise IoT devices
• Identify anomalies across the eIoT device estate with continuous monitoring
• Harden posture across eIoT with vulnerability assessments with actionable guidance to help remediate at-risk devices

Note: Microsoft Defender for IoT also offers operational technology (OT) security for covering OT/ICS environments across industries like manufacturing, energy, automotive, healthcare and more. For more information, click here.

Secure your IT and eIoT endpoints from one place

Enterprise IoT devices are purpose-built, proprietary devices like printers, scanners, voice-over-IP (VoIP) phones, conferencing equipment, Smart TVs and more, that are supported with a network connection to help streamline business processes and operations. To help security teams evolve their endpoint security approach to include eIoT devices, we have merged the Enterprise IoT security experience directly into the Defender portal. This simplified experience removes the need to navigate across additional portals – helping security teams see, monitor, and harden their IT and eIoT endpoints from one place.

Enable eIoT security in four easy clicks

To get started with eIoT security, a user with Global Admin or Security Admin access must activate the service in the Defender portal. This process is simple and can be turned on with just four easy clicks by navigating to Settings > Device discovery > Enterprise IoT > Switch to On. For more information click here.

Figure 1: Turn on Enterprise IoT security from the Device discovery page found in Settings.

See and monitor your entire IT and eIoT estate with a combined inventory

Once IT and eIoT endpoints are discovered with the Defender for Endpoint agent, the detected devices will populate a combined Device Inventory.  This new experience enables security teams to seamlessly visualize and move across all IT and eIoT devices found on the network.

Figure 2: See all of your IT and eIoT endpoints in one place with a combined Device Inventory.

Manage vulnerabilities and remediate at-risk eIoT

Now that the endpoints have been discovered, it’s time to prioritize securing the devices most at risk. By merging Defender for IoT – Enterprise IoT security into the Defender portal, security teams will now be able receive vulnerability assessments and tailored recommendations for managing at-risk eIoT devices.

Figure 3: Receive vulnerability assessments and tailored recommendations for managing at-risk eIoT devices.

Licensing overview

What is changing?

• Microsoft Defender for IoT is being changed from a consumption-based payment model in the Azure portal, to a per device per month licensing model as part of Microsoft 365.
• Microsoft Defender for IoT is now available for new and existing customers of Microsoft 365 E5 and E5 Security. The new license included provides coverage for up to 5 enterprise IoT devices per eligible user license at no additional cost.

What if I’m an existing Defender for IoT customer?

For customers with both Defender for IoT and E5 licenses:

If you are an existing Defender for IoT customer using the Azure-based payment model and an E5 customer, you will have access to coverage for up to 5 enterprise IoT devices per eligible user license and no longer be charged for that coverage.

For customers who have Defender for IoT but are not an existing E5 customer

If you are an existing Defender for IoT customer and are currently using the Azure-based payment model, you can continue to use the existing plans and will not see a change in your billing.

For more details reach out to your Microsoft account team.

Start a trial today!

For customers with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, you can start a 90-day trial to try these capabilities now.

Let us know what you think!

We are excited to make it easier for organizations to secure both their IT and eIoT devices more easily and help them defend against the evolving threat landscape. Let us know what you think in the comments below. We take all feedback into consideration as we work to enhance your security experience. 

Learn more about enterprise IoT security with Defender for IoT

• Learn more about Microsoft 365 E5
• Start securing IoT devices in the enterprise
• Read the enterprise IoT security FAQ
• Learn more about Defender for IoT billing
• Discover how Microsoft can help secure OT devices

Sources

² Transforma Insights. (2023, October 23). Current IoT Forecast Highlights. https://transformainsights.com/research/forecast/highlights

¹ Petrov, C. (2023, September 19). 49 Stunning Internet of Things Statistics to Know in 2023. Techjury. https://techjury.net/blog/internet-of-things-statistics/