Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Defender for Endpoint is a comprehensive, cloud-native endpoint security solution that delivers visibility and AI-powered cyberthreat protection to help stop cyberattacks across Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and IoT devices. Built on the industry’s broadest cyberthreat and human intelligence insights, Defender for Endpoint can seamlessly evolve your security with XDR-level alert correlation to automatically disrupt sophisticated cyberthreats such as ransomware. Defender for Endpoint provides visibility into devices in your environment and offers exposure management to help you better understand your cyberattack surface. It delivers endpoint protection, endpoint detection and response (EDR), mobile cyberthreat protection, and advanced hunting in a single platform. With Defender for Endpoint, customers can discover and secure endpoint devices across a multiplatform enterprise.

As a comprehensive endpoint protection solution, Defender for Endpoint includes Microsoft Defender Antivirus—next-generation protection that reinforces the security perimeter of your network. It detects and blocks known and evolving cyberthreats in real time across Linux, macOS, Windows, and Android devices. Microsoft Defender Antivirus includes:
 

• Real-time antivirus protection with always-on scanning that uses file and process-behavior monitoring and other heuristics. It also detects and blocks apps that are deemed unsafe but might not be detected as malware.
• Cloud-delivered protection with near-instant detection and blocking of new and emerging cyberthreats.
   

Microsoft Defender has consistently demonstrated top-tier protection in independent AV testing. It was an AV-Test “Top Product” throughout 2024 and into 2025, and received multiple awards from AV-Comparatives for its effectiveness in both enterprise and consumer scenarios. In addition, Defender has maintained a triple AAA rating in SE Labs quarterly testing.
https://selabs.uk/reports/microsoftdefender-for-office-365/

Defender for Endpoint provides cross-platform coverage across Windows, Linux, macOS, iOS, Android, and IoT devices. New features or capabilities are typically provided on operating systems that haven't yet reached the end of their support lifecycle. In line with industry best practices, Microsoft recommends the installation of the latest available security patches for any operating system.

No. Security analysts manage Defender for Endpoint from the Microsoft Defender XDR portal—a single console for comprehensive endpoint protection, including vulnerability management, cyberthreat protection, and detection and response capabilities.

For customers wanting to operate their security and IT teams in tandem, Defender for Endpoint provides a consistent, single source of truth—mirrored in Intune—for managing endpoint security settings across Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Customers who want to extend endpoint protection to multiple domains can avoid the extra integration steps often required by other endpoint protection vendors.

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a cloud-native endpoint security platform that provides visibility, cyberthreat protection, and EDR capabilities to stop cyberattacks across Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and IoT devices. Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is a collaborative security solution that helps secure your email and Microsoft Teams environments with advanced protection against phishing, business email compromise, ransomware, and other cyberthreats.

Microsoft has long invested in safe deployment practices and established a robust model in how we deliver updates to customers of Defender for Endpoint. In addition, customers have full control over how updates are delivered and how controls are applied to their device estate. This model of shared control helps ensure security and resiliency.