Cyber attacks do not only target large enterprises. Microsoft Defender for Business brings enterprise-grade endpoint security to SMB organisations at an accessible price. We explain what it does and when it is worth it.
The idea that cyber attacks only target large companies has been wrong for some time. Research from national cybersecurity agencies consistently shows that SMBs are increasingly targeted precisely because they are less well protected than large enterprises. Microsoft Defender for Business is specifically designed to close this gap.
Microsoft Defender for Business is an endpoint security solution for organisations with up to 300 employees. It combines antivirus, firewall, attack surface reduction, behaviour-based detection and automated remediation in a single platform, managed from Microsoft Intune or the dedicated Defender portal.
Compared to the consumer version of Windows Defender, Defender for Business adds the following enterprise features: Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), threat analytics, centralised policy management, automated investigations and remediation actions, and integration with Microsoft 365 Lighthouse for managed service providers.
EDR is the core of Defender for Business. While traditional antivirus works based on signatures of known viruses, EDR continuously monitors the behaviour of processes, files and network connections across all devices. Suspicious behavioural patterns are recognised and blocked, even for previously unknown malware.
When an attack is detected, Defender for Business automatically generates an incident report with a timeline of what happened, which systems were affected and what remediation steps were taken. This gives IT administrators and external partners immediate insight without spending hours searching through log files.
One of the most powerful preventive features is Attack Surface Reduction (ASR). ASR rules block behaviours that attackers typically use — such as executing scripts from email attachments, launching Office macros that create executable files, and abusing vulnerable driver components.
Many successful attacks can be prevented by correctly configuring ASR rules, with no noticeable impact on employee productivity. It does require knowledge of the work environment to avoid false positives.
Microsoft Defender for Business costs approximately €3 per user per month as a standalone product. It is also included in Microsoft 365 Business Premium, which for most SMBs offers the most cost-effective combination of productivity, email security and endpoint protection.
At Zarioh Digital Solutions, we help organisations implement and configure Defender for Business, including optimal ASR rule settings and integration with Microsoft Sentinel for advanced logging. Contact us for more information.
