Description:
Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances is part of Microsoft Defender for Cloud and offers advanced threat protection for Azure SQL Managed Instances. It provides real-time security monitoring, vulnerability assessments, and threat detection for SQL Managed Instances, helping to safeguard your databases from potential threats, vulnerabilities, and misconfigurations. When enabled, Defender automatically monitors your SQL Managed Instances and generates security alerts for any suspicious activities or potential risks.
By setting Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances to 'On', you ensure that your SQL databases are continuously monitored for security threats, ensuring proactive identification and mitigation of vulnerabilities and attacks.
Rationale:
Enabling Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances helps to:
Enhance database security by providing continuous monitoring and threat detection for SQL Managed Instances.
Detect vulnerabilities by proactively scanning for misconfigurations and security risks in SQL databases.
Increase compliance by ensuring that your databases are continuously monitored for any security threats, meeting regulatory and security standards.
Provide actionable security insights through real-time alerts and recommendations, helping database administrators to quickly respond to potential threats.
Impact:
Setting Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances to 'On' will:
Increase visibility into the security posture of your SQL Managed Instances, ensuring that any potential vulnerabilities or threats are detected and addressed promptly.
Generate alerts on potential security incidents, including suspicious activity, misconfigurations, and security breaches in your SQL databases.
Help meet compliance standards by ensuring continuous monitoring and threat detection, which is often a requirement for meeting regulatory frameworks (e.g., GDPR, SOC 2, ISO 27001).
Default Value:
By default, Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances is not enabled. This feature must be manually configured to 'On' to start providing security monitoring and threat detection for SQL Managed Instances.
Pre-requisites:
Azure subscription with Microsoft Defender for Cloud enabled.
Azure SQL Managed Instances deployed in your environment.
Global Administrator or Security Administrator permissions to enable Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances.
Audit:
Sign in to Azure portal as a Global Administrator or Security Administrator.
Navigate to Microsoft Defender for Cloud > Environment settings.
Ensure that Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances is set to 'On' for all relevant SQL Managed Instances.
Implementation Steps (Automated):
Sign in to Azure portal:
Use an account with Global Administrator or Security Administrator permissions.
Navigate to Microsoft Defender for Cloud:
In the Azure portal, go to Microsoft Defender for Cloud.
Go to Environment Settings:
Under Microsoft Defender for Cloud, select Environment settings.
Enable Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances:
In the Environment settings pane, locate the option for Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances.
Set this option to 'On' to enable monitoring and protection for your SQL Managed Instances.
Save the Configuration:
After setting Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances to 'On', click Save to apply the changes.
Verify the Setting:
After saving the configuration, verify that Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances is enabled and monitoring your SQL Managed Instances.
Check the Microsoft Defender for Cloud dashboard to ensure that security alerts related to your SQL Managed Instances are being generated.
Monitor Alerts and Security Insights:
Start monitoring Defender for SQL Managed Instances for security alerts, vulnerability assessments, and threat detection.
Use Azure Monitor or Microsoft Defender for Cloud dashboards to track database vulnerabilities, threats, and security recommendations.
Test the Configuration:
Test by creating a test SQL Managed Instance and simulate potential security threats (e.g., unauthorized access attempts) to ensure that Microsoft Defender triggers relevant alerts and security insights.
Communicate to Relevant Teams:
Notify DevOps, Database Administrators, or Security Operations teams about the new security monitoring and alerts provided by Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances.
Backout Plan (Automated):
Sign in to Azure portal:
Use an account with Global Administrator or Security Administrator permissions.
Navigate to Microsoft Defender for Cloud:
Go to Microsoft Defender for Cloud.
Go to Environment Settings:
Under Environment settings, find Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances.
Disable Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances:
Set the option to 'Off' to disable monitoring and protection for SQL Managed Instances.
Save the Configuration:
After disabling the setting, click Save to apply the changes.
Test the Reverted Configuration:
Verify that Microsoft Defender for SQL Managed Instances is no longer monitoring your SQL Managed Instances by checking the absence of security alerts in the Defender for Cloud dashboard.
Monitor the Reversion:
Ensure that the configuration has been successfully reverted by confirming that no further Defender for SQL Managed Instances alerts are triggered.