Microsoft 365 Unique Identities and Multi-Factor Authentication Enablement
About the Service
Microsoft 365 credentials are often used to access cloud services, which means each username must be unique to ensure data is available only to the intended person. This could include SIMS data in SIMS NextGen or in the future, our service portal, or personal information in Oracle Fusion. This username is usually your work email address.
Multifactor authentication (MFA) adds extra security to your Microsoft credentials. Typically, this uses an authenticator app on your mobile phone or other device in conjunction with your username and password to access secured resources. MFA is an excellent method of protecting your identity and has been proven by Microsoft to prevent 99% of identity-related breaches.
This service is part of our collection of Microsoft 365 Assisted Setup consultancies, designed to help schools prepare staff accounts for cloud services. Other options include:
- Microsoft Office 365 OneDrive consultancy
- Microsoft 365 Teams Setup consultancy
- Microsoft Office 365 Sway consultancy (newsletters)
We also offer technical support for schools once setup with unique identities/MFA to enable Conditional Access MFA or to setup Single Sign-On between network and Microsoft 365. Please ensure you review the additional information below, before requesting this service.
What are the benefits?
- Unique identities with MFA significantly increase the security of school data.
- Prepares your school for using SIMS Next Gen (cloud version of SIMS).
- Ensures that staff who will access SIMS Next Gen have a unique identity and have MFA enabled on their account, meeting a key pre-requisite for access to SIMS Next Gen
- Adds an extra check at login, reducing the risk of unauthorised access to sensitive data stored in SIMS Next Gen
- Enables MFA in your Microsoft tenancy for each user with a Microsoft 365 unique identity
- Help meet the 'Control and secure user accounts and access privileges' section of the DfE Technical Standard for Cyber Security in Schools
- Helps meet data protection regulations
- Reassures school staff, governors and parents that the school is taking positive steps to protect their data and the pupils' data
- Any issues can be identified and addressed early
- Eliminates downtime reading manuals or support pages
What's Included?
Service Features
Our Microsoft 365 Unique Identities and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) Enablement Service is designed to protect school and data and ensure that staff accounts are setup ready for cloud-based solutions, such as SIMS Next Gen.
As part of the Microsoft 365 Unique Identities and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) Enablement consultancy service, we will:
- agree dates for the required consultancy slots (two separate dates are recommended, an initial session to enable MFA for staff you choose as your MFA pilot and then a second date to complete your schools' MFA enablement for all staff)
- explain how MFA works
- provide a list of your users in your tenancy, and with the aid of an authorised member of school staff, update and cleanse this list for you
- prepare your tenancy by setting up appropriate security and Teams groups and assigning appropriate Microsoft licences
- enable Conditional Access (if your school has our A3 EES licences), which helps reduce the number of MFA challenges staff will receive, while continuing to give enhanced security
- set up unique identities for up to five staff
- convert generic accounts (e.g., head@, bursar@, contactus@) to shared team mailboxes, which will enable approved office team staff to access these generic accounts
- migrate files and folders from any generic accounts to relevant user's unique identity One Drive (personal work storage folder) or, alternatively, to Microsoft Teams file storage areas
- enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) in Microsoft 365 for the unique identities to provide improved security, ready for staff to use with Microsoft Authenticator app