SaaS Security
Onboard a Microsoft Exchange App for Scans That Use the Microsoft Graph API
Table of Contents
Onboard a Microsoft Exchange App for Scans That Use the Microsoft Graph API
Connect a Microsoft Exchange instance to SSPM to detect posture risks.
This SSPM connector, which uses PowerShell and the Microsoft
Graph API to complete scans, is deprecated. We have decided to remove this connector
because this approach does not support multi-factor authentication (MFA). After May
30, 2025, you will not be able to onboard Microsoft Exchange using this connector.
Instead, you can onboard Microsoft Exchange using the connector that employs data
extraction techniques for scans.
If you onboard a Microsoft Exchange instance with
this connector prior to its removal, your established connection will continue
to work. However, if there is any change to the configuration information that
you provided to SSPM (such as an updated login password), you will need to
onboard the Microsoft Exchange instance again using the data extraction
connector.
For SSPM to detect posture risks in your Microsoft Exchange instance with more detail
than the Office 365 app scan, you must onboard your Microsoft Exchange instance to
SSPM. Through the onboarding process, SSPM connects to a Microsoft API and, through
the API, scans your Microsoft Exchange instance for misconfigured settings. If there
are misconfigured settings, SSPM suggests a remediation action based on best
practices.
To onboard your Microsoft Exchange instance, you complete the following actions:
Collect Information for Connecting to Your Microsoft Exchange Instance
To access your Microsoft Exchange instance, SSPM requires the following
information, which you will specify during the onboarding process.
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Username |
The login email address for a Microsoft account. The account
must not require multi-factor authentication (MFA).
Required Permissions: The user must be assigned to
one of the following roles.
|
| Password |
The password for the Microsoft account.
|
| Client ID | SSPM will access a Microsoft API through an Azure AD application that you create. During the onboarding process, SSPM prompts you for a Client ID that uniquely identifies the application. |
As you complete the following steps, make note of the values of the items
described in the preceding table. You will need to enter these values during
onboarding to access your Microsoft Exchange instance from SSPM.
- Identify the Microsoft account that SSPM will use to access your Microsoft Exchange instance.Account requirements:
- The account must have Global Reader, Exchange Administrator, or Global Administrator permissions.
- The account must not require MFA.
After SSPM establishes the connection, it will perform an initial scan of your Microsoft Exchange instance, and will then run scans at regular intervals. For SSPM to run these scans, the administrator account that you use to establish the initial connection must remain available. For this reason, we recommend that you use a dedicated service account to grant SSPM access. If you delete the service account, the scans will fail and you will need to onboard Microsoft Exchange again.Register an Azure AD Client ApplicationDuring onboarding, SSPM will access a Microsoft API through an Azure AD client application that you create. Follow the instructions to register a an Azure AD client application, and note the Client ID that Azure AD generates for the client app.If you have already onboarded another Microsoft application that requires an Azure AD client application, you can use that same Azure AD client app to onboard Microsoft Exchange. If necessary, ask the administrator who registered the Azure AD client app for its Client ID.Do not continue to the next step unless you have obtained the Client ID. You will provide this information to SSPM during the onboarding process.Connect SSPM to Your Microsoft Exchange Instance
By adding a Microsoft Exchange app in SSPM, you enable SSPM to connect to your Microsoft Exchange instance. - Log in to Strata Cloud Manager.Select and click the Microsoft Exchange Powershell tile.Under posture security instances, Add Instance or, if there is already an instance configured, Add New instance.Log in with Credentials.When prompted, provide SSPM with the Microsoft user credentials and the Client ID of the Azure AD application.Connect.
