{"id":4325,"date":"2021-04-12T14:32:08","date_gmt":"2021-04-12T19:32:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stratospherenetworks.com\/blog\/?p=4325"},"modified":"2021-04-12T14:32:08","modified_gmt":"2021-04-12T19:32:08","slug":"what-you-should-know-about-microsoft-office-365-account-takeovers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stratospherenetworks.com\/blog\/what-you-should-know-about-microsoft-office-365-account-takeovers\/","title":{"rendered":"What You Should Know About Microsoft Office 365 Account Takeovers"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\"Af someone stole your Microsoft credentials, how many different apps and how much private data could they access? If you\u2019re like many workers who rely on the supplier\u2019s cloud-based<\/a> productivity suite, that kind of compromise would expose all your info in Outlook<\/a>, Teams<\/a>, OneDrive<\/a> and other vital business applications.<\/p>\n

Given the sheer amount of data available via these types of accounts, it\u2019s no surprise that they\u2019re popular targets in the world of cybercrime. A recent Vectra AI survey of IT security decision-makers responsible for safeguarding Microsoft Office 365 deployments<\/a> with over 1,000 employees found that 71 percent of those deployments had suffered malicious account takeovers during the past year, according to a press release<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On top of that, the survey data showed that organizations that reported account takeovers had experienced them seven times on average. Additionally, only one out of three of the security professionals said they\u2019d be able to spot and squash a takeover right away.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s clear that account takeovers are a common and serious cybersecurity threat for businesses, particularly as many companies have increased their reliance on cloud applications<\/a> to meet the needs of remote workers. If your company utilizes Office 365 or Microsoft 365, here\u2019s some vital info about how these attacks occur, what you can do to prevent account takeovers, and how you can catch and stop them as fast as possible if they get past your defenses.<\/p>\n

Note: Microsoft rebranded some but not all Office 365 plans last year as Microsoft 365. For details, check out this blog entry: \u201cMicrosoft 365 vs. Office 365: Everything Business Leaders Should Know<\/a>.\u201d
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1. How do hackers usually take over Microsoft Office 365 accounts?<\/h2>\n

To successfully execute account takeovers, cybercriminals often trick end users into disclosing their login credentials with phishing messages<\/a>, according to the blog entry \u201cStopping Office 365 Account Takeover Attacks in Their Tracks<\/a>\u201d from Symantec. Other tactics include installing malware on users\u2019 devices and carrying out brute force attacks in which hackers repeatedly try to guess the right password.<\/p>\n

2. What can I do to prevent account takeovers?<\/h2>\n

As we\u2019ve discussed in a previous blog entry<\/a>, the Office 365 suite does have built-in security features \u2013 such as the next-gen threat hunting and AI-driven detection capabilities offered by Microsoft Defender for Office 365<\/a>. However, you can\u2019t rely on the suite\u2019s native defenses alone to effectively combat evolving IT security threats.<\/p>\n

To minimize your chances of experiencing data breaches caused by account takeovers and other types of attacks, you must implement a comprehensive and multi-layered approach to cybersecurity that involves the following elements:<\/p>\n