Customer Webinar

Housing 21 Enhances Microsoft 365's Defense with Egress Defend Against Advanced Phishing

Housing 21, a prominent not-for-profit social housing provider, caters to older individuals of modest means, with over 22,800 properties managed across 240 local authority areas. To safeguard its 4,500 employees and residents, Housing 21 maintained a multi-layered security defense system, including a secure email gateway (SEG).

Bryan Jones, IT Security Manager at Housing 21, saw that advanced phishing attacks were bypassing their SEG and was concerned about the risk of a data breach due to potential email misdirection. He evaluated several solutions and ultimately selected Egress Prevent and Defend to augment his defense system.

Comprehensive Email Security: Egress Augments Microsoft 365 to Address Advanced Email Security Risks

Housing 21 encountered challenges with its SEG in mitigating advanced phishing threats, including spear phishing and attacks hidden within collaboration tools like Google Docs and OneDrive. Despite Microsoft 365's valuable foundational email security features, certain phishing attacks can still bypass signature-based detection. Recognizing the limitations of the traditional rule-based approach, Housing 21 opted to implement Egress Defend as a more effective solution.

Strengthened Security Awareness: Defend Enhances Existing Security & Awareness Training Efforts

Defend provides valuable insights and knowledge through real-time teachable moments within email communications. Users can click on anti-phishing banners to understand why emails were flagged, enabling continuous learning and reducing the risk of falling victim to phishing attacks.

Rapid Resolution: How Defend Accelerated Remediation

Prior to implementing Defend, it took nearly half a day for the team to identify, neutralize, and communicate with users about potential phishing campaigns. With Defend in place, this process was streamlined considerably, taking less than an hour to remediate and remove malicious emails from users' inboxes.

Users also provided positive feedback to the team after the rollout. The overwhelming feedback was that users appreciated the clear and insightful banners that highlighted potential risks without overwhelming them with complex technical jargon.

Simplified Security Stack: Efficiency with Egress and Microsoft 365 Integration

The seamless integration between Egress solutions and Microsoft 365 was aligned with Housing 21’s goal of simplifying their security stack. The ability to manage both products in one portal also reduced administrative overhead and ensured a more efficient security management process.