Introduction
AI workloads rely on multiple connected services for data, models, and compute. Each layer introduces new security challenges, from misconfigured storage and exposed endpoints to malicious prompts that can compromise sensitive data or model integrity.
Imagine a developer deploys a model with public access still enabled. A single misconfiguration like this could expose training data or allow prompt manipulation that puts the entire workload at risk. Traditional cloud protections are not always equipped to detect or prevent these AI-specific issues.
Microsoft Defender for Cloud extends protection to AI workloads by discovering AI assets, assessing configurations, detecting active threats, and correlating incidents across your environment. Through its Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) and Cloud Workload Protection (CWP) capabilities, it helps you maintain secure configurations and detect suspicious activity as it happens.
Learning objectives
In this module, you learn how to:
- Enable and configure the AI workloads plan in Microsoft Defender for Cloud
- Review AI-related insights in the Data & AI security dashboard
- Assess and improve AI posture using Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
- Detect and respond to runtime AI threats using Cloud Workload Protection (CWP)
- Investigate and manage AI security incidents in Microsoft Defender XDR
Prerequisites
Before you begin, you should have:
- Experience managing Microsoft Defender for Cloud plans and Azure configurations
- Familiarity with Azure AI services such as Microsoft Foundry or Azure Machine Learning
- A basic understanding of threat detection and incident response in cloud environments