Technology Success

Demystifying new named Offi ce 365

 DARRYL MCALLISTAR

AN old favorite from Microsoft just received a new name change that impacts its SMB and home subscriptions. After debuting in 2011 and leading the cloud office transition, Office 365 has been renamed to Microsoft 365.

Th is had some Sydney business owners wondering if something was happening to the Offi ce productivity suite itself, as well as trying to understand what’s changing and if the new name impacts pricing.

We’re here to bring some clarity to the transition as well as go over some of the reasons Microsoft 365 is an excellent platform for technology success and overall cybersecurity.

Why Did the Name Change?

First, let’s address the worry about why “Offi ce” was dropped. Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook haven’t gone anywhere, they remain at the core of the Microsoft 365 platform.

Th e popularity of cloud programs like Microsoft Teams and OneDrive, which were part of Offi ce 365 but not the original Offi ce suite, is one reason. Th e new name expands the understanding of the 365 platform to be more inclusive of other Microsoft programs beyond Offi ce.

Between March and April, 2020, Microsoft Teams number of daily active users jumped from 44 million to 75 million.

Microsoft began this transition from Offi ce to Microsoft a while back when they renamed Offi ce 365 Secure Score to Microsoft Secure Score.

Th ey also previously brought out the package bundle of Offi ce 365, Intune, Windows 10, and additional security features, called Microsoft 365. It’s still available, just with a slight name change.

What’s Changing with Microsoft 365?

Currently, all pricing and subscription features are staying the same. Only the names are changing. Th e old to new name transition is as follows: • Office 365 Business Essentials is now Microsoft 365 Business

Basic. • Office 365 Business Premium is now Microsoft 365 Business

Standard. • Microsoft 365 Business is now

Microsoft 365 Business Premium. • Office 365 Business and Office 365 ProPlus are now Microsoft 365 Apps (Where necessary,

“for business” and “for enterprise” labels distinguish between the two.)

What Else Has Changed?

Microsoft brought out a new free Teams version for consumers. It also has added thousands of new free premium Offi ce templates, fonts, stock images, and videos for Microsoft 365 users to take advantage of.

Improving Your Security with Microsoft 365

With four Microsoft 365 choices, which one gives you the best value for added cybersecurity? 77% of global organisations are actively improving their cyber resilience, and 60% believe a phishing incident will be likely in the coming year.

Security & Device Management in Microsoft Business Premium

Th e reason that we recommend Microsoft 365 Business Premium, is because it has additional safeguards beyond the other subscriptions. Th ese include security features, like anti-phishing tools and the ability to manage endpoint devices with Intune.

With remote workers becoming the norm since the pandemic, it’s vital to maintain visibility into the devices being used to access your business applications and data. Intune off ers the ability to control device access, keep remote devices properly updated, and secure endpoints no matt er where they are.

Added Security Enhancements in Microsoft 365

Th ere are several features within Microsoft 365 that companies can use to improve security and do it in a way that saves them time. One of these is sensitivity labels. Th ey allow automatic application of document security policies to protect sensitive data (watermarks, “do not copy,” encryption, etc.).

Using one integrated platform makes it easy to apply security and compliance policies across all your apps and data.

Just a few of the security features that Microsoft continues to rollout for users are: • Safe links to combat phishing,

Phishing campaign views in

Microsoft 365 ATP and Safe documents Information barriers for compliance.

Use MFA the Way You Want

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is one of the best ways to prevent compromised accounts due to credential theft or hacks. According to Microsoft , using MFA stops 99.9% of account hacks.

Using MFA with Azure and Microsoft 365 allows you to simply the MFA login process for users, while giving you the capability to apply the safeguards you want.

For example, you can choose to add security questions based upon the level of access to sensitive data. You can also choose between MFA notifi cation types like voice calls and authenticator apps.

You can really call Microsoft 365 Business Premium a security suite in addition to a productivity suite. Let our Netcare team show you why it’s one of the best tools for both office productivity and cybersecurity. DARRYL MCALLISTAR is CEO at Netcare. Contact us today to schedule a consultation. Call (02) 9114 9920 or reach out online.

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