Using different SaaS technologies has become integral in the workplace. The bigger the company, the more services needed. According to customer surveys conducted by Microsoft, over 80% of employees admitted to using unapproved SaaS apps for corporate use. Microsoft recently released their solution, which is now generally available, Microsoft Cloud App Security.
Some Shocking Facts
In their blog post, Microsoft shared with us some very eye-opening facts on the challenge of Shadow IT. They found that in 91% of organizations “employees grant their personal accounts access to the organization’s cloud storage” and that 70% of organizations allow cloud admin activity from unsecured networks.
What are they offering?
There are 3 key features that Microsoft is offering with their Cloud App Security.
1. App Discovery: From every device, every app being used in your network is identified and you will receive risk scoring and ongoing assessment of all applications.
2. Data Control: You can set granular controls and policies for data sharing and loss prevention.
3. Threat Protection: Cloud App Security uses behavioral analytics and anomaly protection to block possible threatening apps.
How will this affect the SaaS industry?
It’s reasonable to assume that we will see more businesses adopting SaaS applications, provided that Microsoft offers the protection it promises. Microsoft claims that others have tried to tackle this issue and were unsuccessful. If Microsoft succeeds, we can expect others in the tech industry to join the trend.