Email is still the #1 attack surface
Email remains the primary entry point for cyber threats. With AI-driven phishing and impersonation attacks on the rise, organizations must go beyond default mail protection.
I recently completed an email security deployment for one of my clients, connecting their Microsoft 365 mailboxes to Sophos Email Security and applying industry-recommended policies.
- Microsoft 365 mailboxes connected to Sophos
- Inbound and outbound email protection enabled
- Advanced policies configured and tested
🛡️ Policies implemented
Email Security
Protection against spam, phishing, impersonation, malware and malicious URLs.
Data Control
Prevents sensitive data leakage, including PII, financial data and confidential information.
Secure Message
Encrypts sensitive emails for safe communication with external recipients.
⚙️ Key settings and protections configured
- Anti-phishing and impersonation protection
- Malware and ransomware detection
- URL and QR code scanning
- Authentication checks (SPF, DKIM, DMARC alignment)
- Bulk and spam control
- Quarantine and policy-based email handling
- Real-time monitoring and reporting
- Secure outbound email scanning
- User and admin-level visibility and control
📊 Results from the dashboard
The Sophos dashboard gives immediate visibility into what is reaching the organization’s mailboxes.
Of the inbound mail, 1,404 messages were legitimate, while the rest was filtered as bulk (196), authentication failures (138), unscannable (65) and spam (26), plus individual URL/QR code and impersonation catches. Outbound mail was clean, with 235 legitimate messages and no threats.
👨💻 My recommendation
As an IT engineer, I highly recommend combining Microsoft 365 with Sophos Email Security in 2026 to ensure:
- ✔ Strong threat prevention
- ✔ Data protection and compliance
- ✔ Secure communication
- ✔ Business continuity