Improvement Actions
Discover and track security improvement actions to increase your Microsoft Secure Score. Each action represents a specific security configuration that strengthens your organization’s security posture when implemented.
Note: Improvement actions are recommendations from Microsoft Secure Score. Completing actions increases your score and reduces risk. Actions are weighted by security impact.
Score Overview
- 67% — Current Score
- +15% — Potential Increase
- 42 — Actions Available
- 8 — In Progress
Action Categories
Identity
MFA enrollment, conditional access policies, password policies, admin role protection, and identity governance.
Progress: 72%
Data
Information protection, DLP policies, sensitivity labels, encryption settings, and data governance.
Progress: 58%
Device
Intune compliance policies, endpoint protection, BitLocker, application control, and device configuration.
Progress: 65%
Apps
OAuth app permissions, consent policies, app governance, and third-party application security.
Progress: 81%
Actions List
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Action | Title of the improvement action |
| Category | Identity, Data, Device, or Apps |
| Points | Score points earned when completed |
| Status | To address, In progress, Completed, Resolved |
| User Impact | Low, Medium, or High impact on users |
| Implementation Cost | Effort required: Low, Medium, High |
Top Recommendations
Require MFA for all users (+9 pts)
Enable multi-factor authentication for all users through Conditional Access or Security Defaults to protect against credential theft.
- Category: Identity
- User impact: Medium
Designate fewer than 5 global admins (+4 pts)
Reduce the number of global administrators to minimize the blast radius of a compromised admin account.
- Category: Identity
- User impact: Low
Turn on audit data recording (+3 pts)
Enable unified audit logging to track user and admin activities for security investigations and compliance.
- Category: Data
- User impact: Low
Enable BitLocker encryption (+5 pts)
Require BitLocker drive encryption on all Windows devices through Intune policy to protect data at rest.
- Category: Device
- User impact: Low
Action Status
To Address
Action has not been started. Represents a security gap that should be evaluated for implementation.
In Progress
Action is being implemented. Partially completed or in pilot phase. Track progress notes here.
Completed
Action is fully implemented. Automatically detected by Microsoft or manually marked as complete.
Resolved Through Third Party
Addressed through a non-Microsoft solution. Claim partial or full points with justification.
Planned
Scheduled for future implementation. Set target date and track in project planning.
Risk Accepted
Organization accepts the risk and chooses not to implement. Document risk acceptance rationale.
Action Details
Description
Detailed explanation of the security control and why it matters. Includes links to Microsoft documentation.
Implementation Steps
Step-by-step guidance for implementing the action. Links to relevant admin portals and configuration pages.
User Impact Analysis
Expected impact on end users. Communication recommendations and change management guidance.
Notes & History
Add custom notes, track implementation progress, and view status change history.
Filtering & Prioritization
By Category
Filter to Identity, Data, Device, or Apps categories based on your current security priorities.
By Points
Sort by point value to focus on high-impact actions that significantly increase your score.
By User Impact
Filter to low user impact actions for quick wins that don’t require extensive change management.
By Implementation Cost
Find low-effort actions to implement quickly or plan for high-effort projects.
Best Practices
- Start with quick wins — Implement low user impact, low cost actions first to build momentum.
- Prioritize identity actions — Identity is the primary attack vector — MFA and admin protection have high ROI.
- Track progress over time — Set score improvement goals and review progress monthly.
- Document risk acceptances — If not implementing an action, document the business justification.
API Reference
GET /api/security/improvement-actions— List all improvement actionsGET /api/security/improvement-actions/:id— Get action details and implementation stepsPUT /api/security/improvement-actions/:id/status— Update action statusPOST /api/security/improvement-actions/:id/notes— Add notes to an actionGET /api/security/improvement-actions/summary— Get score summary by category