Microsoft Defender for Identity
Identity protectionStart your Defender for Identity deployment security assessment
In brief
The page now states that the assessment identifies servers without a Defender for Identity sensor and helps you unde… It also updates the metadata date and changes the advanced hunting link text from Microsoft Defender XDR to Microsoft Defender.
What Defender admins need to know
Administrators get clearer context about what the assessment identifies and an updated link for related hunting guidance.
Summaries are generated from the documentation change itself.
Documentation change
View on Microsoft LearnThe comparison below shows only the changed extract. Use the full-page view for complete context.
Security assessment: Start your Defender for Identity deployment
This article describes the Start your Defender for Identity deployment security assessment, which encourages you to install sensors on domain controllers and other eligible servers. This assessment identifies servers in your environment that lack a Defender for Identity sensor and helps you understand the security risks of incomplete deployment. Use this guide to review the assessment findings in Microsoft Secure Score and take action to deploy sensors across your infrastructure.
Why is not having Defender for Identity deployed considered a risk?
Defender for Identity uses your on-premises Active Directory signals to identify, detect, and investigate advanced threats, compromised identities, and malicious insider actions directed at your organization.
Defender for Identity is also part of monitoring for Zero Trust. You may also want to use advanced hunting queries in Microsoft Defender to look for threats acrossin identities, devices, and cloud apps.
For more information, see:
@@ -1,16 +1,16 @@ --- title: Start your Defender for Identity deployment security assessment description: Learn how the Start your Defender for Identity deployment assessment helps identify missing sensor installations on domain controllers and other eligible servers.-ms.date: 06/15/2026+ms.date: 07/02/2026 ms.topic: how-to ms.reviewer: rlitinsky ai-usage: ai-assisted-ms.custom: msecd-doc-authoring-1014+ms.custom: msecd-doc-authoring-1016 --- # Security assessment: Start your Defender for Identity deployment -This article describes the **Start your Defender for Identity deployment** security assessment, which encourages you to install sensors on domain controllers and other eligible servers.+This article describes the **Start your Defender for Identity deployment** security assessment, which encourages you to install sensors on domain controllers and other eligible servers. This assessment identifies servers in your environment that lack a Defender for Identity sensor and helps you understand the security risks of incomplete deployment. Use this guide to review the assessment findings in Microsoft Secure Score and take action to deploy sensors across your infrastructure. ## Why is not having Defender for Identity deployed considered a risk? @@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ If you've obtained a Defender for Identity license, but haven't yet deployed Def Defender for Identity uses your on-premises Active Directory signals to identify, detect, and investigate advanced threats, compromised identities, and malicious insider actions directed at your organization. -Defender for Identity is also part of monitoring for Zero Trust. You may also want to use [advanced hunting queries in Microsoft Defender XDR](/microsoft-365/security/defender/advanced-hunting-overview) to look for threats across identities, devices, and cloud apps.+Defender for Identity is also part of monitoring for Zero Trust. You may also want to use [advanced hunting queries in Microsoft Defender](/microsoft-365/security/defender/advanced-hunting-overview) to look for threats in identities, devices, and cloud apps. For more information, see: