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Microsoft 365 Protection

Microsoft 365 Protection

Overview

As organizations migrate to Microsoft 365 for email, collaboration, and productivity, comprehensive protection becomes critical. Soteria Cloud's Microsoft 365 Protection solution combines backup, email security, and archiving to safeguard Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive, and Teams data. With backups stored in Teraco's Johannesburg and Cape Town data centers, South African organizations can protect their M365 environments from data loss, ransomware, retention gaps, and email threats while maintaining POPIA compliance and data sovereignty.

The Microsoft 365 Protection Gap

Many organizations mistakenly believe Microsoft 365 provides complete data protection. However, significant gaps exist:

  • Limited Retention - Deleted items retained only 30-93 days; permanent deletion is possible

  • Shared Responsibility Model - Microsoft's SLA covers service availability, not data protection

  • Ransomware Vulnerability - OneDrive/SharePoint files can be encrypted by ransomware

  • Accidental Deletion - Users can permanently delete emails, files, and entire sites

  • Compliance Gaps - Native retention may not meet regulatory requirements

  • Email Threats - Sophisticated phishing and BEC attacks bypass native security

  • No Granular Recovery - Difficult to restore individual items from native tools

Soteria Cloud's M365 Protection Solution

1. Comprehensive Backup

  • Exchange Online - Mailboxes, calendars, contacts, tasks, and public folders

  • SharePoint Online - Sites, document libraries, lists, and metadata

  • OneDrive for Business - All user files and folders

  • Microsoft Teams - Channels, conversations, files, and tabs

  • Automated Scheduling - Continuous or scheduled backups with no user intervention

  • Unlimited Retention - Keep backups as long as needed for compliance

  • Immutable Storage - Backups in Teraco data centers cannot be encrypted or deleted by ransomware

2. Advanced Email Security

  • Anti-Phishing - AI-powered detection of credential harvesting and social engineering

  • Anti-Malware - Multi-engine scanning of attachments for malware and ransomware

  • URL Sandboxing - Suspicious links detonated in isolated environments

  • BEC Detection - Identifies impersonation attacks and CEO fraud

  • Spam Filtering - Reduces inbox clutter and blocks unwanted messages

  • Quarantine Management - Users and admins can review and manage quarantined emails

3. Email Archiving

  • Long-Term Retention - Archive emails for years or decades as required by regulations

  • eDiscovery - Full-text search across archived emails for legal and compliance needs

  • Legal Hold - Preserve emails for litigation without user access

  • Compliance Search - Find emails by sender, recipient, date, keywords, or attachments

  • Audit Trails - Track who accessed archived emails and when

How M365 Protection Works

1. API Integration - Soteria Cloud connects to your M365 tenant via secure OAuth API (no MX changes or agents required).

2. Initial Backup - Complete backup of all mailboxes, SharePoint sites, OneDrive accounts, and Teams data.

3. Incremental Backups - Ongoing backups capture all changes: new emails, file modifications, deletions.

4. Email Security Layer - Inbound emails pass through Acronis security engines before reaching mailboxes.

5. Archiving - Emails are archived to Teraco-hosted storage with full-text indexing.

6. Storage in Teraco - All backup and archive data encrypted and stored in Johannesburg and Cape Town data centers.

7. Recovery & Restore - When needed, restore individual items or entire mailboxes/sites through intuitive interface.

Common Protection Scenarios

Scenario 1: Accidental Deletion

  • Problem: User permanently deletes important email thread from 6 months ago

  • Solution: Search backups, locate email, restore to mailbox in minutes

  • Outcome: Critical business communication recovered; no data loss

Scenario 2: Ransomware Attack

  • Problem: Ransomware encrypts user's OneDrive files via compromised credentials

  • Solution: Restore all OneDrive files from backup taken before attack

  • Outcome: All files recovered to clean state; no ransom payment needed

Scenario 3: Compliance Audit

  • Problem: Auditor requests emails from 5 years ago for regulatory review

  • Solution: Search email archive, export relevant messages with metadata

  • Outcome: Compliance requirement met; audit passes successfully

Scenario 4: Phishing Attack

  • Problem: Sophisticated phishing email bypasses Microsoft Defender

  • Solution: Acronis Email Security detects and quarantines phishing attempt

  • Outcome: Credentials not compromised; users protected from attack

Scenario 5: Departing Employee

  • Problem: Employee terminated; need to preserve all their M365 data for legal reasons

  • Solution: Export complete backup of mailbox, OneDrive, and Teams data

  • Outcome: All data preserved for legal hold; compliant with retention policies

Granular Recovery Capabilities

  • Individual Emails - Restore single emails or attachments without recovering entire mailbox

  • Email Folders - Restore entire folders (Inbox, Sent Items, custom folders)

  • Mailboxes - Restore complete mailboxes to original or alternate location

  • SharePoint Items - Restore individual documents, lists, or entire sites

  • OneDrive Files - Restore individual files, folders, or entire OneDrive accounts

  • Teams Data - Restore channels, conversations, and associated files

  • Point-in-Time Recovery - Restore to any previous backup point

  • Cross-User Restore - Restore items from one user's backup to another user's mailbox

Compliance Benefits

  • POPIA (South Africa) - Data residency in Teraco ensures personal information stays in SA

  • GDPR (European Union) - Right to erasure, data portability, breach notification

  • HIPAA (Healthcare) - Secure backup and archiving of protected health information

  • Financial Regulations - Email retention for banking, securities, and financial services

  • Legal Discovery - eDiscovery and legal hold for litigation support

  • Industry Standards - ISO 27001, SOC 2, and other compliance frameworks

Best Practices

  • Enable backup for all M365 services (Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams)

  • Configure frequent backup schedules (daily or continuous) to minimize data loss

  • Set retention policies that meet or exceed regulatory requirements

  • Enable email security to protect against threats bypassing Microsoft Defender

  • Implement email archiving for long-term retention and eDiscovery

  • Test recovery procedures regularly to ensure RTO/RPO targets are met

  • Train users on self-service recovery to reduce IT support burden

  • Monitor backup success rates and storage consumption

Why Choose Soteria Cloud for M365 Protection

  • Data Sovereignty - Backups remain in South African Teraco data centers

  • POPIA Compliance - Meet data residency and protection requirements

  • Comprehensive Protection - Backup, security, and archiving in single solution

  • Rapid Recovery - Low-latency access to backups enables fast restoration

  • Predictable Pricing - Per-user pricing in ZAR with transparent storage costs

  • Local Support - Soteria Cloud's team provides expert assistance

  • Proven Platform - Built on Acronis Cyber Protect Cloud, trusted by millions

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