Security Operations & Incident Response

A spike in failed sign-ins can reflect a password spray, a misconfigured application, an expired credential, or a normal user change such as a device rollout. Blocking all affected accounts without context may interrupt operations while missing the actual source. What to check Group events by source, target accounts, application, location, and time....

A newly created administrator account may be a planned deployment identity or an unauthorized persistence mechanism. The account name alone does not establish intent, and removing it immediately can disrupt production if it is legitimate. What to investigate Check creator identity, approval records, creation time, role assignments, authentication...

A large download may be legitimate work, a backup, or an unauthorized export. The volume alone does not identify intent, and delaying review can allow sensitive information to leave the organization. What to check Check actor, resource, destination, time, authentication context, device, prior behavior, and any approved export request. Correlate cloud...

A newly created forwarding rule may be a legitimate workflow or a way to quietly copy business messages outside the organization. The rule can be hidden in mailbox settings and remain active after a password reset. What to check Identify who created the rule, its destination, creation time, account sign-ins, mailbox audit events, and any matching...

A newly approved OAuth app may be an employee productivity tool or a malicious integration seeking persistent access to mail, files, or contacts. Revoking it without checking could interrupt work, while ignoring it may leave data exposed. What to check Identify the app publisher, consenting user, granted scopes, creation time, tenant-wide consent,...

A newly created public bucket may be an intentional website asset location or an accidental exposure of internal data. Storage permissions can be inherited or changed by policy after creation. What to check Confirm bucket owner, creation event, public access path, object inventory, data classification, access logs, and deployment purpose. Review...

A new service account may support an approved integration or create persistent access that is difficult to attribute. Its permissions and secret custody can be broader than the immediate task requires. What to check Review creator, owner, purpose, permissions, authentication method, secret storage, last use, and approval record. Compare activity with...

A login from a new device can indicate legitimate travel or a new laptop, but it can also reflect stolen credentials or a session token. Device novelty alone is not enough to determine whether access is authorized. What to check Confirm the user through an independent contact path, review authentication method, device registration, location and time...