Microsoft 365 Security Baseline for SMEs
The tenant controls that should be in place before Microsoft 365 becomes the easiest route into your business.
Read the guide ->Cybersecurity doesn’t work when it’s bolted onto weak foundations. We build it into identity, devices, backups, cloud and support from the start — practical protection, explained in plain English.
Attackers don’t target firewalls — they target identities, unpatched devices and people. We secure the things that are actually exploited, in the right order.
Many breaches start with a compromised identity. We lock down identity with MFA, conditional access and least-privilege through Microsoft Entra ID.
Every laptop and server is a way in. We deploy EDR, hardening and patching so devices are defended and kept current automatically.
Security alerts only help if someone acts on them. We monitor, triage and respond — so a signal becomes containment, not a missed email.
Strong authentication and policy-based access that blocks risky sign-ins without getting in your team’s way.
Identity lifecycle, privileged access and access reviews kept tidy — so old accounts and over-permissions stop being a risk.
Defender, mailbox protection and tenant hardening configured to a known-good standard, then kept from drifting.
Continuous visibility of weaknesses across devices and software, prioritised by real risk — not a 400-page report nobody reads.
Tested, isolated backups so ransomware doesn’t become an extinction event. Recovery you’ve actually proven, not hoped for.
Cyber risk explained to non-technical decision-makers, in language a board can act on.
Practical preparation for certification, closing the gaps that matter to clients, insurers and regulators.
Your people are the front line. Managed training and phishing simulation that builds habits, not box-ticking.
Not sure where you stand on the basics? Get an honest read in a couple of minutes.
Try the free Cyber Essentials readiness checkNo one control stops everything. We build overlapping layers, so if one is bypassed, the next still holds.
MFA, conditional access and least-privilege — the first and most important layer.
EDR, hardening and patching so every device is defended and current.
Isolated, tested backups so an incident is recoverable, not terminal.
Continuous visibility and alerting, so signals are seen and triaged.
Defined plans and senior decision-making to contain and recover, fast.
One capability — hardening your Microsoft 365 and devices to the CIS benchmark — delivered at two depths. Every client gets Secure during onboarding. Regulated and risk-conscious clients step up to Assured for the evidence and accreditation support a compliance regime demands.
The baseline every NorthMSP client is brought up to — aligned to the CIS Microsoft 365 benchmark and Cyber Essentials. A defensible, recognised standard from day one.
Everything in Secure, plus the gap analysis, evidence and accreditation support that regulated clients and insurers expect. The accreditation is held by your organisation — we configure, evidence and prepare you for it.
The worst time to work out who does what is during a live incident. We help you prepare beforehand — response plans, escalation paths, tabletop exercises — and provide senior leadership during and after an incident.
Short guides on Microsoft 365 security, practical MSP checks and why certification is only the start.
The tenant controls that should be in place before Microsoft 365 becomes the easiest route into your business.
Read the guide ->The basics that separate managed security from ticket handling with a nicer invoice.
Read the guide ->Why Cyber Essentials is useful, but not the same thing as being resilient, monitored and ready to recover.
Read the guide ->Feedback and recognition from our founder’s career in security and live incident response. Identities withheld to respect confidentiality.
After a cyber attack, he went above and beyond to get us back on track — and found issues across our infrastructure that both we and our own IT support had missed. Worth his weight in gold.
Called in on a live ransomware case, their own cyber specialists reviewed his incident report and rated it one of the best they had ever read.
Working a live breach alongside him, the insurer’s incident-response team confirmed he had hit every marker they needed covered.
A major endpoint-security vendor called his input critical to resolving the incident — and escalated his findings to their global team.
Most organisations don’t know their real exposure until someone looks properly. We’ll review your posture and tell you straight — no fearmongering, no upsell.