Introduction
This module examines the email security features provided by Microsoft Exchange Online Protection (EOP). EOP is a cloud-based email filtering service included in the Microsoft 365 suite. It serves as a foundational or base level of email security within the Microsoft 365 environment. It provides essential protection against common email-borne threats, such as spam and malware. EOP includes features to safeguard organizations from messaging-policy violations. EOP can simplify the management of an organization's messaging environment. It can also alleviate many of the burdens that come with maintaining on-premises hardware and software.
Microsoft 365 tenants that have mailboxes hosted in Exchange Online rely on the Exchange Online Protection service to route inbound and outbound mail. EOP is also instrumental in protecting organizations from phishing, spoofing, spam, and malware. EOP provides email security through a combination of techniques, including:
- IP and sender reputation
- heuristics
- spam filtering
- malware filtering
- machine learning
- filtering for phishing and spoofing
While EOP provides a solid foundation for email security, organizations with more advanced security needs can enhance their protection by incorporating additional security features and services, such as those offered by Microsoft Defender for Office 365. This layered approach helps address a broader range of sophisticated threats and provides a more comprehensive defense against evolving cybersecurity risks. Together, EOP and Microsoft Defender for Office 365 provide a complete solution for protecting users against cyberthreats originating in email.
Most of this learning path training focuses on the benefits and implementation of Microsoft Defender for Office 365. However, you begin in this module by reviewing the capabilities of EOP. You start by examining how mail flows through EOP. You also explore the technologies EOP uses to block spam, bulk email, and malware before mail arrives in users’ mailboxes. This module further investigates EOP to see how it protects organizations from phishing and spoofing. EOP includes techniques that administrators can implement to provide further protection.