Enhanced security and increased productivity in Microsoft 365

Östra Grevie Folkhögskola in Östra Grevie and Malmö was founded in 1914 and is one of Sweden's largest folk high schools. Employees use Microsoft 365 for files, communication, collaboration and various Microsoft tools.

Needed the right skills for IT security

As cyber incidents around the world increased and a nearby municipality, among others, was affected, they started discussing how to strengthen security. Incidents can lead to the loss of valuable data, personal data breaches or inability to access teaching materials. This in turn can impair teaching and lower trust in the school.

- We felt that we did not have sufficient expertise in IT security, so we contacted Upheads, which we have been working with since 2015," says Sofia Andersson, CFO, who together with Nabil Mbarka is also responsible for IT.

Total solution for safety and productivity

Upheads reviewed the security measures in place and identified areas that needed to be improved to maintain high security in 365. The proposal then became a comprehensive solution with security enhancements to protect the school's data and digital resources, device management with Intune, backup with a third-party provider, support and training.

Anton Ehn, Account Manager at Upheads, says that the services help Östra Grevie to have a high level of security in 365.

- We respond to alerts and threats that come into their 365, and let users know what has happened and what we have done," he says.

Sofia says it's also important to maintain productivity, so Upheads sends a quarterly report on productivity at the organizational level. It contains tips and tricks to work more efficiently. "We look at the report and advise staff on what we can do together for productivity, security and compliance, such as sharing files in Teams instead of emailing," says Sofia.

Informative discussions on phishing

Sofia thinks users are responding well to the changes.

- Employees have a good understanding of the importance of IT security. Upheads give us good information about why we do certain things, and we communicate that to users.

The solution also includes online data security training and regular simulated phishing attacks to constantly remind staff of IT threats. The phishing emails often spark fun discussions and provoke a lot of thought. We become much more aware of what emails we receive and what we should avoid clicking on," says Sofia.

Expanded from network to strategic partner

East Grevie's collaboration with Upheads started with network services, and has gradually expanded to include more services, including GDPR compliance in 2018. During the implementation of the security measures, they held regular joint meetings to ensure that everything was progressing correctly.

- "I'm looking forward to continuing with regular meetings in the future. Then it will be natural to talk about strategic work as well, and we appreciate having a sounding board for working strategically with IT," says Sofia.

Anton will continue to hold the meetings, and sometimes bring in a technician as well. It is very good to get to know the customer's organization better and better to be able to find gaps and needs in their IT solution, he says. Sofia feels that Upheads cares about Östra Grevie as a customer and that the contact persons are easy to get in touch with and provide good service.

- We have great confidence in Upheads. Otherwise we wouldn't have stayed on since 2015 and expanded the collaboration," she concludes.

Summary

Challenges

- Needed to strengthen the security of its Microsoft 365 platform

- IT incidents in your area

- Difficult to select and optimize security features in Microsoft 365 on your own

Solution

The Upheads Evergreen complete solution with:

- Implementing security measures in 365

- Device management with Intune to secure company data on all devices

- Backup of Microsoft 365 Data with a third-party provider

- Support where staff can call, email and chat

- IT security training and regular simulated phishing attacks

- Onboarding and offboarding of employees and units

- Measurement, analysis and tips on organizational effectiveness in Microsoft 365

Values

- Raises its Microsoft Security Score to at least 60% and will maintain it

- High level of security without compromising productivity

- Tips and tricks to work more efficiently