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According to Microsoft’s latest Digital Defense Report, 97% of identity attacks are password spray attacks. This statistic shows that most attackers aren’t using sophisticated cracking techniques. Instead, they rely on a straightforward but effective approach: testing a handful of common or previously exposed passwords across many accounts. In 2026, the biggest password risks are not…

In this episode of First Ring Daily, Brad Sams and Paul Thurrott discuss Artemis II astronauts facing Outlook for Windows issues in space, Microsoft’s new in-house AI models, and more.

As organizations move from on-premises Active Directory to cloud management, many admins need to Import Group Policy Objects to Microsoft Intune, and GPOs often become the last big roadblock. Traditional Group Policy only applies to domain-joined Windows devices, while Microsoft Intune can manage Windows, macOS, iOS/iPadOS, and Android, making it the natural destination for modern…

Microsoft’s retirement of the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) has left many IT administrators racing to replace a tool that still underpins critical OS deployment workflows. While cloud‑based management promises simplicity, the transition is revealing gaps that cloud solutions alone can’t yet fill. Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) was a free Microsoft utility widely used by IT…

Microsoft has introduced custom graphs support in Microsoft Sentinel, which is available in public preview starting April 1, 2026. This new capability is designed to help security teams better understand and investigate complex attacks by visualizing relationships across security data in a more connected way. Modern cyberattacks span multiple entities (users, devices, identities, applications, and…

Microsoft has released its roundup of new features added to its Microsoft Intune in March. The latest enhancements focus on improving compliance visibility while strengthening management capabilities for Apple devices and mobile applications. Microsoft has now improved how Windows devices receive check-in notifications. In addition to the existing Windows Notification Service, Microsoft Intune now uses…

Microsoft today announced Patch Tuesday 2.0, a new servicing cadence designed to “deliver updates faster” by doubling Patch Tuesday into Patch Tuesday and ‘Patch Again Thursday’. Starting April 1, admins can look forward to two scheduled opportunities monthly to refresh change-management plans and rediscover the joys of emergency CAB meetings. “Customers told us once a…

Microsoft has issued a new out-of-band update to address issues caused by a recent Windows 11 preview release, following widespread reports of installation failures. The problematic update (KB5079391) could not be installed on some devices. Last week, Microsoft released the non-security preview update (KB5079391) for Windows 11 versions 25H2 and 24H2. It brings various improvements,…

Cloud maturity is quietly becoming the defining factor in who wins the AI race, and IT leaders are at the center of that divide. New research shows that while AI ambitions are surging, only 14% of organizations have the cloud expertise needed to turn those ambitions into real, scalable impact. According to a new report…

Microsoft has introduced a new License Usage page in the Microsoft Entra admin center. This feature allows organizations to better understand and optimize how their Entra licenses are being used. Many organizations struggle to manage Microsoft Entra licenses because they lack clear insight into how purchased licenses and premium features are actually used across their environment. Licenses are…

Microsoft has announced a major upgrade to Microsoft 365 Copilot’s Researcher agent. This update brings a new Critique feature that leverages OpenAI’s GPT and Anthropic’s Claude models to enhance the quality of its responses. Microsoft 365 Copilot’s Researcher agent is an AI capability designed to help users answer complex questions by pulling together information from…

On March 18, 2026, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued an alert urging organizations to harden Microsoft Intune and other endpoint management systems after a cyberattack used legitimate management features, rather than malware, to cause widespread disruption. That should change how we classify Intune. When a single control plane can push code,…