Microsoft, Partners Expand Threat Detection Across Platforms

Microsoft has partnered with Bitdefender, Lookout, and Ziften to extend the threat detection capabilities of its Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) service across multiple platforms, including macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android.

What Is Windows Defender ATP?

Windows Defender ATP is a threat intelligence and protection service that Microsoft launched in 2016. The service targets primarily enterprise customers who want to protect themselves against sophisticated attackers, such as nation state-sponsored attackers or organized cybercrime groups.

Due to the new partnerships with the three security companies, Windows Defender ATP subscribers can now see, in a single window, which of their devices are under attack. Every device also has its own rich event timeline, so security professionals can dig down and analyze all events for a device from the past six months, if there’s a suspicion that the respective device has been hacked.

Threat Detection Across Devices

According to Microsoft, its enterprise customers have been asking the company for a security solution that can detect threats across a whole range of devices. As Microsoft doesn’t typically offer security solutions for most platforms out there, it has partnered with antivirus maker Bitdefender, mobile security company Lookout, and cloud security company Ziften to create a security solution that can work on all platforms.

Bitdefender's GravityZone Cloud integration with Windows Defender ATP will enable customers to view comprehensive threat intelligence on malware and suspicious files, such as threat type, category, and other details. Lookout Mobile's Endpoint Security will give customers real-time visibility into the type of threats that may be affecting mobile devices as well as ways to respond to those threats. Ziften’s Zenith cloud security solution will enable customers to detect zero-day exploits and to uncover the full scope of a data breach on internal systems.

Windows Defender ATP integration with Bitdefender is now in Public Preview, and Lookout and Ziften will join it soon. Microsoft noted that these three products are just the first of the several upcoming partners for its Windows Defender ATP service, so we can expect the company to make more related announcements soon.