Industry certifications to help boost your cybersecurity career

Four basic online safety tips to remember

Three awards for BUI as Microsoft SA honours top partners

BUI named MXDR partner for Microsoft’s new business security services

BUI is proud to announce its selection as a Managed Extended Detection and Response (MXDR) partner for Microsoft’s new business security services, Microsoft Security Experts.

Microsoft Security Experts was unveiled this month and includes three new managed services: Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting, Microsoft Defender Experts for XDR, and Microsoft Security Services for Enterprise. Two existing services – Microsoft Security Services for Modernization and Microsoft Security Services for Incident Response – are now also part of this portfolio.

As an MXDR partner, BUI will work in conjunction with Microsoft to manage extended detection and response services for some of the largest enterprise customers globally, from threat monitoring to mitigation and investigation.

“We’re excited to continue our security journey with Microsoft,” says BUI Managing Director Ryan Roseveare. “This new collaboration builds on our longstanding relationship, and we look forward to working alongside Microsoft to help customers protect and defend their IT environments from emerging cyberthreats.”

A timely development

In 2021, Microsoft security technology blocked over 9.6 billion malware threats and more than 35 billion phishing emails and malicious messages. “Technology is critical, but it’s the combination of leading technologies, comprehensive threat intelligence, and highly skilled people that makes for a truly effective security posture,” notes Vasu Jakkal, Microsoft Corporate Vice President: Security, Compliance, Identity, and Management.

Roseveare agrees. “The cybersecurity landscape is incredibly complex. You need comprehensive tools and holistic knowledge to navigate it successfully. Here at BUI, we’ve focused on building both: our Cyber Security Operations Centre is a state-of-the-art facility designed to leverage and integrate with Microsoft technology, and our security specialists are world-class technologists with a deep understanding of the challenges that businesses are facing today.”

BUI’s tried-and-tested blend of people, process and technology will be critical going forward, adds Roseveare, given the alarming increase in the number and sophistication of cyberattacks.

A trusted partner

BUI was part of a select group of Microsoft Partner organisations involved in the development of Microsoft Security Experts. As a Microsoft Azure Expert MSP, a managed security service provider, and a member of the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association, BUI is consistently recognised as a strategic partner for cybersecurity innovation. BUI holds nine Microsoft Advanced Specializations – including Cloud Security and Threat Protection – and earned Microsoft South Africa’s Security Partner of the Year Award in 2021, 2020, and 2019.

“We’re serious about security. We always have been,” says Roseveare. “We’ve earned the trust and loyalty of customers around the world because we provide the best possible security solutions and the right advice. As an MXDR partner for the Microsoft Security Experts portfolio, we’ll continue to put our expertise to work for customers – because we’re here to help them safeguard their business resources, from the endpoint to the cloud,” he concludes.

• Learn more about Microsoft Security Experts on the official website
• Read Microsoft’s full announcement on the Microsoft Security blog

Improve your security posture with an expert partner.

Cybercriminals are targeting businesses large and small to try to gain access to sensitive, confidential, or proprietary data and resources.

What steps have you taken to prevent a breach? Stay ahead of threat actors by choosing a managed detection and response service from BUI.

Understanding Microsoft’s New Commerce Experience

Microsoft’s New Commerce Experience has reached Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform licensing in the Cloud Solution Provider programme – and there are significant changes coming in 2022.

Here at BUI, we’re already hard at work, helping our cloud customers to navigate the New Commerce Experience successfully.

We’re also fielding queries from business teams who are struggling to understand Microsoft’s New Commerce Experience. We hear you. And that’s why we’re tackling your most common questions today. You asked, and we’re answering. Let’s take a closer look.

Q. What is the New Commerce Experience?

A. The New Commerce Experience (NCE) is Microsoft’s integrated commercial platform, designed to simplify the sale of its cloud products and services globally.

Microsoft created the NCE to streamline and standardise licensing via Cloud Solution Providers (CSPs), Enterprise Agreements (EAs), and its own online portals – so that customers experience similar pricing and terms across a number of sales models.

In 2019, Microsoft implemented the NCE for CSPs, starting with Microsoft Azure. And since then, the NCE has been rolled out in stages. Today, customers with Azure Plan subscriptions – as well as those who buy Azure Reserved Instances, perpetual software, server software, and third-party apps and offers through CSPs – transact through the NCE platform.

In January 2022, Microsoft expanded the NCE to include commercial seat-based subscriptions for Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform in the CSP programme – and introduced new offers with new rules.

“The New Commerce Experience is the present and future of how Microsoft sells cloud products and services to customers, both directly and through partners… It will also make the selling process, requirements, and capabilities much more consistent across the Microsoft sales ecosystem.” – MICROSOFT

Q. What does the New Commerce Experience mean for my business?

A. Simply put, the NCE will change the way that you purchase Microsoft 365 (M365), Dynamics 365 (D365), and Power Platform subscriptions from your CSP. There are three key differences between the legacy CSP experience you’re familiar with and the NCE. It’s important to note:

1. The subscription options. Under the NCE, there are monthly and annual subscription options to help you cater for fixed and fluid staffing scenarios within your business.

• Monthly subscriptions give you the freedom to purchase licences on a month-to-month basis as needed, and the flexibility to decrease the number of licences at the end of the month. There is, however, a 20% price premium for month-to-month subscriptions.
• Annual (12 months) and Multi-Year (36 months) subscriptions provide price protection for longer term commitments. You will be able to add licences during the term, but you will only be able to decrease licence counts at the end of the term.

2. The cancellation policy. In the legacy CSP experience, an option to cancel a subscription wasn’t available. Instead, your CSP could suspend a subscription to stop the billing for it, and the subscription would expire if not renewed at the end of the term.

• Under the NCE, a seat-based subscription of any term length can be cancelled – BUT only within the first 72 hours of the term, with a prorated refund (calculated daily). After the first 72 hours, no cancellation is possible, and billing will continue for the remainder of the term.
• The cancellation period of 72 hours includes all days of the week, and doesn’t exclude weekends or holidays. So, if a subscription is purchased on a Friday, you will have until the following Monday to cancel it.

3. The seat reduction policy. Seat counts on NCE subscriptions can be reduced – BUT only within the first 72 hours of the term. After the first 72 hours, no seat reductions are possible. It’s therefore critical to ensure that your subscriptions and seat counts are accurate from the start of the agreement.

Q. Why should I have my subscriptions moved to the NCE?

A. Microsoft has made it clear that the NCE platform will soon be the platform on which all CSP products and services are provisioned.

During the months in which the NCE and the legacy CSP experience are available side by side, your CSP will initiate the process of moving your existing subscriptions to the NCE platform, and start placing new subscriptions via the NCE in preparation for the eventual decommissioning of the legacy CSP experience.

Q. When will my subscriptions on the current platform be required to be moved to the NCE?

A. From 10 March 2022, CSPs will no longer be able to order new subscriptions on the legacy CSP platform. From 1 July 2022, CSPs will no longer be able to renew existing subscriptions on the legacy CSP platform. You should engage directly with your CSP to determine the best schedule for your transition to the NCE. Your licensing strategy, your business needs, and your budget (among other factors) should be considered during this discussion.

Q. What other dates do I need to know about?

A. Microsoft is clear about the NCE timelines, and there are several dates to diarise:

1 March 2022. Although unrelated to the New Commerce Experience, Microsoft’s previously announced commercial price increases for Microsoft 365 come into effect at the beginning of March this year. If you have Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, Office 365 E1, Office 365 E3, Office 365 E5, or Microsoft 365 E3 subscriptions in play, then you’ll need to consider the new pricing as part of your planning for the NCE.

10 March 2022. All new subscriptions must be purchased via the NCE platform from 10 March 2022 onward. Your CSP will no longer be able to order new subscriptions on the legacy CSP platform.

1 July 2022. Starting in July, all renewals must occur via the NCE platform. Your CSP will no longer be able to renew existing subscriptions on the legacy CSP platform.

From October 2022, all customers will have to make purchases via the NCE platform.

In June 2023, all legacy CSP subscriptions will be retired.

Now’s the time to review your subscriptions

If you rely on Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform in your day-to-day business environment, then it’s important to evaluate your current subscriptions in line with the New Commerce Experience timelines.

How many licences do you have? How many licences do you actually need? Are you paying a premium for features that aren’t being used? What is the best time for your business to transition from the legacy CSP experience to the NCE? What Microsoft NCE promotions can you take advantage of right now? Consider these questions with your CSP as you review the cloud solutions that enable workplace productivity for your teams.

Need help? We can optimise your Microsoft licensing.

As a Microsoft Azure Expert MSP and Gold Microsoft Partner with 16 competencies and 9 advanced specialisations, BUI is a recognised cloud and security leader.

Let’s talk about streamlining your Microsoft licences, refining your purchasing strategy, and maximising your cost savings for this year and the years ahead.

Are your endpoint security measures tough enough for the times?

More than 80% of enterprises had embarked on a hybrid workplace journey by the middle of 2021. Today, the combination of on-site, remote, and mobile productivity is considered part of the new normal – but it also presents significant challenges for corporate cybersecurity teams.

With employees working from so many different locations, using multiple devices and methods of connectivity, managing and monitoring endpoints is a demanding job. And the task is further complicated by the status quo: as personal and professional lives overlap, the lines between home equipment and business equipment are being blurred.

In a recent survey, 46% of employees admitted using their corporate laptop for “life admin” – including online shopping and social media – and 30% said they had allowed someone else to use their work device.

Alongside these emerging trends in device use and misuse, there is substantial evidence that the cyberthreat landscape has been changed irrevocably – by the COVID-19 pandemic and by rapid digital transformation. As the world grappled with the first wave of coronavirus cases in early 2020, there was a 238% spike in cyberattack volume.

Threat actors took advantage of the sudden shift to home-based and remote productivity – and no industry was spared. Miners, manufacturers, financial institutions, healthcare providers, retail outlets, non-profit organisations, and even schools and universities were targeted. Unsecured endpoints – from smartphones to printers – were often exploited during these cyberattacks.

According to the International Data Corporation, 70% of all successful network breaches begin on endpoint devices. To safeguard your enterprise network, you need to monitor every endpoint. You need to apply controls and restrictions. You need to identify anomalies. And you need to respond to threats as they occur. How does your endpoint security strategy measure up?

Are you managing vulnerabilities?

For comprehensive security, you have to be able to identify, assess, and remediate endpoint vulnerabilities and threats in real time. Loopholes and misconfigurations are weaknesses that cybercriminals will try to exploit.

Are you reducing the attack surface?

To minimise your exposure to cybercrime, you have to reduce your attack surface. With stringent controls for devices, applications, and folders, plus comprehensive defences against network intrusions and malware, you can lessen the risk to your resources.

Have you enabled endpoint detection and response?

When you’re proactive about threat hunting within your IT environment, you can harness the power of machine learning, big data, and advanced analytics to detect suspicious behaviours and malicious activities on endpoints – and remediate cyberthreats when they occur.

Have you automated investigation and remediation?

High volumes of security alerts and notifications can overwhelm corporate cybersecurity teams and delay their response times. Leverage the security tools at your disposal and apply decision-making algorithms to investigate and resolve security issues automatically, and at scale.

Continuous threat intelligence from endpoints is critical to help your security teams provide robust protection across your enterprise environment. With full endpoint visibility, you will be better positioned to eliminate potential penetration points, monitor emerging threats, and improve your overall security posture.

Get advanced security with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint.

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint uses a combination of technologies built into Windows 10 and Microsoft’s cloud service to generate continuous threat intelligence.

Talk to our experts to learn more about Defender for Endpoint’s advanced threat protection, centralised management, and detailed reporting features.

Providing proactive strategies to enhance data security

We’re excited to announce that we’ve been awarded the Microsoft Information Protection and Governance Advanced Specialization in recognition of our elite capabilities in the deployment of Azure Information Protection and Microsoft Information Protection workloads, as well as our expertise in enhancing data security for customers.

The Information Protection and Governance Advanced Specialization is our ninth advanced specialization from Microsoft, and our fourth such premier accreditation in the security category, which includes Cloud Security, Identity and Access Management, and Threat Protection.

With the exponential growth of data, and increasing data mobility in modern workplaces around the world, more and more customers are looking for trusted partners to help them implement effective information-protection solutions, says Managing Director Ryan Roseveare.

“Data security and compliance are major concerns for business leaders,” explains Roseveare. “They need to manage their data properly, mitigate internal and external risks, and adhere to the rules and regulations that are applicable to their enterprises. They also need to be proactive at every turn, because the threat landscape is changing faster than ever.”

An era of data mobility

In recent years, privacy laws like the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, California’s Privacy Rights Act, South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act, and Kenya’s Data Protection Act have put information management in the spotlight.

“Organisations are re-examining their practices in terms of data processing and data protection,” continues Roseveare. “Not only because of the legal requirements, but also because of the security risks associated with undiscovered, ungoverned data. IT experts with the deep technical knowledge and experience to guide customers through digital adoption, and enhance their information-protection solutions for this era of data mobility, are in global demand.”

To earn the Information Protection and Governance Advanced Specialization, BUI had to meet stringent criteria around service delivery and support, and pass a rigorous assessment of its security and governance technical practices. “Our teams are committed to advancing their skills and abilities, and this recognition from Microsoft is a welcome validation of our focus, our continuous investment in security, and our value-driven approach to customer relationships,” says Roseveare.

BUI, named Azure Infrastructure Partner of the Year and Security Partner of the Year at the 2021 Microsoft South Africa Partner Awards last month, is a Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Services Provider and a member of the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association. “As cloud and security specialists, we’re delivering innovative data-protection solutions that enable customers to locate, classify, manage and secure their sensitive information wherever it lives, and wherever it travels. We look forward to new opportunities to help businesses govern and protect their data estates,” concludes Roseveare.

Keep your sensitive information safe and secure.

A comprehensive information protection and governance strategy can help you to safeguard business data, and identify internal and external risks.

Talk to our specialists about customised security solutions to keep your data secure on devices, within applications, and across on-prem and cloud environments.

Three ways to shore up your defences against phishing

From ransomware to SolarWinds, the cybersecurity space has been as hectic as ever over the past 12 months. However, for all of the emerging threats on the horizon, phishing – one of the oldest pain points in cybersecurity – continues to wreak havoc for enterprises around the world.

It’s often overlooked in terms of media hype, but phishing has been a mainstay in the cybersecurity threat landscape for decades. In fact, 43 percent of cyberattacks in 2020 featured phishing, while 74 percent of US organisations experienced a successful phishing attack last year alone. And globally, cybercriminals exploited public fears over the COVID-19 pandemic to find new phishing victims.

Phishing remains one of the most serious risks to an organisation’s cybersecurity health, but with proper anti-phishing hygiene and best practices in place, you can shore up your defences. Here are three simple tips to help you deal with phishing threats…

1 | Know how to spot the red flags

Phishing scammers are masters of making their content and interactions appealing. From content design to language, it can be difficult to discern whether content is genuine or a potential threat, which is why it’s crucial to look for the red flags.

Unusual formatting, overly explicit call-outs to click on a hyperlink or open an attachment, and subject lines that create a sense of urgency are all warning signs. Emails with these hallmarks should be treated with caution. And if you suspect a phishing attempt, contact your IT department immediately.

2 | Verify the source

Cybercriminals may impersonate someone you already know – such as a colleague, service provider or friend – as a way to trick you into believing that their malicious content is trustworthy. Don’t fall for it.

If an email is out of place, or unusual, reach out directly to the sender to confirm whether the content is authentic and safe. If not, break off communication immediately and flag the incident through the proper channels at your workplace.

3 | Be aware of vishing and other types of phishing

Threat actors have diversified their phishing efforts beyond traditional email. For example, voice phishing – or vishing – has become a primary alternative for scammers looking to gather sensitive information from unsuspecting individuals.

Similar to conventional phishing, vishing is typically executed by individuals posing as legitimate contacts – like healthcare providers or insurers – and asking for sensitive data. It’s imperative for individuals to be wary of any sort of communication that asks for personal information (via email, phone or chat), especially if the communication is unexpected. If anything seems suspicious, break off the interaction immediately and contact the company directly to confirm the authenticity of the communication.

Phishing may be “one of the oldest tricks in the book”, but it is still incredibly effective and increasingly widespread. By exercising caution and vigilance, and by deploying these few fundamentals, you can reduce your chances of falling victim to a phishing attack.

This article has been adapted from Cyber Security Awareness Month resources supplied by the event organisers, and is published here with permission. References include:

• The 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report from Verizon
• The 2021 State of the Phish Report from Proofpoint

BUI is proud to be a 2021 Cyber Security Awareness Month Champion Organisation. Follow along on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter for more security tips throughout October!

Get end-to-end protection for your organisation.

Our Cyber SoC leverages state-of-the-art Microsoft Security technology – including Azure Sentinel – to continuously monitor connected environments.

With cloud-powered data processing, cyberthreats are detected, analysed, and managed in near real-time to provide comprehensive, end-to-end protection.

Two awards for BUI as Microsoft celebrates innovation

We’re so proud to announce that we won the Azure Infrastructure Partner of the Year Award and the Security Partner of the Year Award at the 2021 Microsoft South Africa Partner Awards on Tuesday evening (28 September 2021). In addition to these accolades, BUI was named as a finalist for the Modern Work Partner of the Year Award and the Microsoft Consulting Services Partner of the Year Award.

Held annually, the Microsoft SA Partner Awards recognise outstanding accomplishments by Microsoft Partners in a variety of categories related to competencies, cloud technology, and entrepreneurial spirit. This year’s ceremony was an online event, and Microsoft SA Chief Executive Officer Lillian Barnard praised the Microsoft Partner Network for supporting organisations through the social and economic upheavals of the past 12 months.

Microsoft SA Chief Executive Officer Lillian Barnard delivers her opening remarks during the 2021 Microsoft South Africa Partner Awards virtual gala on 28 September 2021.

“It’s been a challenging time for many South Africans and yet we have remained resilient, and worked together to support our customers, our broader community, and each other,” Barnard said in her opening remarks to attendees. “Our impact and achievements in FY2021 have elevated us to a new level of operational discipline and performance excellence,” she added, acknowledging the agility and innovation shown by partners in response to customers’ evolving business needs.

A turning point for security

BUI Managing Director Ryan Roseveare highlighted the importance of holistic protection after receiving the Security Partner of the Year Award for the third time in a row. “This past year has been an absolute turning point for security,” he explained. “The rapid pace of digital transformation and the shift to remote and hybrid productivity put security firmly in focus, and the rising levels of cybercrime made businesses re-evaluate their risk profiles. We’ve certainly seen an increased number of customers looking for new ways to secure their on-prem and cloud resources.”

The security trophy, continued Roseveare, is a testament to the BUI team’s deep expertise. “We take security seriously. It’s in our blood. It’s what we do every day. And we’re always improving our skills, expanding our capabilities, and exploring next-generation tools to provide superior service and support to our customers. Microsoft’s security stack is very powerful, and we’re able to leverage end-to-end solutions to help organisations protect and defend their critical data and assets.”

A time for cloud-powered modernisation

Master of Ceremonies Aki Anastasiou announced BUI’s victory in the Azure Infrastructure Partner of the Year category with a brief nod to the company’s milestones in 2021. “Well done to BUI for achieving the highest infrastructure-related Azure Consumed Revenue, having a 100-percent cloud-based cyber security operations centre powered by Sentinel, and for celebrating your 21st birthday this year,” Anastasiou said from the virtual stage.

“We’ve built our business around Microsoft Azure,” responded Roseveare. “For more than two decades, we’ve empowered customers to maximise their technological investments. And we’re all in when it comes to the cloud. Azure is a phenomenal platform. It’s constantly growing. And it has the features and functionality to enable connection, collaboration, and innovation at scale,” he added.

As a Microsoft Azure Expert MSP and trusted local partner, BUI completed several major modernisation and migration projects during SA’s coronavirus lockdown period, and continues to build on its reputation for excellence. “It comes down to our people and our processes,” notes Roseveare. “We have a specific culture around skills and skills development, and we invest in our teams to ensure that we remain on the cutting edge. Then, we develop repeatable practices to streamline the digital transformation journey for our customers. The Azure Infrastructure Partner of the Year Award is a prestigious prize, and we’re thrilled with this honour.”

BUI holds advanced specializations in Adoption and Change Management, Cloud Security, Identity and Access Management, Microsoft Windows Virtual Desktop, Teamwork Deployment, and Threat Protection, among others, as well as 16 Microsoft competencies in cybersecurity, productivity, and cloud solutions. “We’re committed to helping customers reap the full benefits of Azure, in terms of cost savings, performance, security, and agility. And we’re excited to support South African enterprises as they move forward into the new year,” concludes Roseveare.

Celebrate with us!

Join us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter as we share more updates and pictures from the 2021 Microsoft South Africa Partner Awards.

And sign up for our newsletter, the BUI Bulletin, to stay up to date with company news and industry developments.

Enabling comprehensive protection for a new world of work

We’re excited to add two new advanced specializations to our Microsoft portfolio: Cloud Security and Calling for Microsoft Teams.

The Cloud Security Advanced Specialization is awarded only to Gold Microsoft Partners with deep technical knowledge related to Microsoft’s cloud security products, and a successful track record of implementing comprehensive protection across Microsoft Azure and hybrid cloud environments.

To earn the Calling for Microsoft Teams Advanced Specialization, Partners must have extensive experience deploying and managing voice solutions in Microsoft 365, and must be able to integrate modern telephony for customers who require end-to-end communication.

‘Build secure and deploy secure’

As enterprises accelerate their digital transformation initiatives to enable remote and hybrid work, holistic security should be a key consideration, says Managing Director Ryan Roseveare. “Cloud adoption is taking place at a rapid rate, but it’s also taking place at a time when cyberthreats are more serious, more sophisticated, and more frequent than ever,” he notes. “A single mistake or misconfiguration could leave your enterprise vulnerable to attack, and you cannot afford such exposure when hackers are actively targeting businesses, almost constantly, every day.”

“Here at BUI, our approach is ‘build secure and deploy secure’,” continues Roseveare. “We make security part of the process from day one. We work with our customers to understand their unique challenges, and we help them to make the most of Microsoft’s cloud security products so that their digital environments are fully protected. Our expertise, certified by this Cloud Security Advanced Specialization and several others, is what gives our customers the peace of mind to move to the cloud confidently,” he adds.

BUI already holds advanced specializations in Adoption and Change Management, Identity and Access Management, Microsoft Windows Virtual Desktop, Teamwork Deployment, Threat Protection, and Windows Server and SQL Server Migration to Microsoft Azure, as well as 16 Microsoft competencies in cloud productivity, cloud solutions, and cybersecurity, among other solution areas.

Modern solutions for a new world of work

The Calling for Microsoft Teams Advanced Specialization recognises BUI’s capabilities in creating modern voice solutions for a work-from-anywhere world, explains Cloud Centre of Excellence Lead Dhiren Boodhia. “With remote and hybrid work here to stay for many enterprises, there’s a demand for phone-calling technologies that combine unified communications and teamwork,” he says.

Calling in Microsoft Teams has rich functionality to enable people to place and receive calls, transfer calls, and mute or unmute calls. “For end-users, the experience is similar to traditional telephony, but with additional features and the power and scale of the cloud,” continues Boodhia, describing how end-users can use a mobile device or a headset with a laptop or personal computer to place calls to anyone listed in their online address book.

“Calling in Microsoft Teams delivers truly seamless communication, but it must be deployed correctly and securely. The implementation process can be quite complex, especially if it involves Microsoft 365 service deployment, networking changes, and the provisioning or porting of large volumes of telephone numbers. Expert hands are needed, and that’s why our specialists are trusted to help enterprises transition from on-prem phone systems to cloud-based ones – as quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively as possible,” concludes Boodhia.

Choose a trusted partner to secure your critical resources.

The BUI Cyber SoC is a state-of-the-art facility backed by world-class Microsoft security technology, including Azure Sentinel.

Take a look inside to see our teams in action, or contact us today to explore next-generation security solutions for your enterprise.