Microsoft Purview Data Protection for SMBs: Your Microsoft 365 Data Is Protected — Only If These Settings Are Enabled

Many SMBs assume their Microsoft 365 data is safe “out of the box”. In reality, Microsoft Purview provides capabilities you must configure and enforce. When the right settings are missing, sensitive data can still be shared, downloaded, or exfiltrated without detection.

Below are the documented settings and practices that turn Purview from “available” into active protection for your tenant.

What Microsoft Purview Data Protection for SMBs Requires

1. Turn On Microsoft Purview Audit.

What to enable

• Enable Microsoft Purview Audit

• Choose the appropriate tier:

  • Audit (Standard) – 180‑day retention

  • Audit (Premium) – longer retention and advanced activities (license dependent)

Why this matters

If Audit wasn’t enabled before an incident, Microsoft cannot recreate the past. No logs = no investigation = no proof.

2. Enforce Data Loss Prevention (DLP) Policies

Microsoft Purview DLP can enforce policies across:

• Exchange Online (emails and attachments)

• SharePoint Online

• OneDrive for Business

• Microsoft Teams (messages; files via SharePoint/OneDrive)

Required configuration

• Policies must be set to block or restrict, not audit‑only

• Policies must be scoped to correct locations

• User notifications (policy tips) must be configured deliberately

DLP that only audits does not prevent data loss.

3. Use Sensitivity Labels with Encryption and Access Control

Sensitivity labels do not enforce protection unless configured to do so.

Labels can:

• Encrypt files and emails

• Restrict opening, forwarding, and copying

• Persist protection after download

Required configuration

• Enable encryption in the label

• Publish labels via label policies

• Ensure Exchange Online mailboxes are used

• Enable label support for SharePoint and OneDrive

4. Configure Retention to Support Security, Compliance, and Recovery

Retention is not enabled automatically and is often misunderstood. Microsoft Purview retention controls govern how long data is kept or deleted — they do not function as backups.

What to configure

• Create retention policies or retention labels for Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams

• Align retention periods with:

  • Legal and regulatory requirements

  • Security investigation needs

  • Business and operational risk

• Avoid overly aggressive deletion that can remove evidence or critical data

Why this matters

Without proper retention:

• Data may be deleted before an incident is discovered

• Investigations may lack historical evidence

• Organizations may fail compliance or legal obligations

Retention ensures data is available when you need it — and removed when you no longer should keep it.

How We Help SMBs Secure Microsoft 365

We help SMBs secure Microsoft 365 by enabling and enforcing Purview protections, while also hardening devices, accounts, and email with Microsoft Intune, Entra ID, and Defender—ensuring real protection, least‑privilege access, and continuous monitoring without disrupting daily work.

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