Differences Between Azure Information Protection (AIP) and Sensitivity Labels in Microsoft 365
In today’s interconnected and data-driven world, organizations need robust tools to protect and manage their sensitive information. Microsoft offers two robust solutions for this purpose: Azure Information Protection (AIP) and Sensitivity Labels. Both of these tools are designed to help organizations classify, label, and protect their data, but they have different features, use cases, and implementations. In this blog post, we’ll dive into the key differences between Azure Information Protection and Sensitivity Labels in Microsoft 365.
Understanding Azure Information Protection (AIP):
Azure Information Protection is a comprehensive solution that allows organizations to classify, label, and protect documents and emails based on their sensitivity level. AIP enables organizations to define specific classifications, apply labels, and enforce protection policies across various platforms and applications. Here are some of the key features of Azure Information Protection:
Classification and Labeling: AIP offers a wide range of classification and labeling options. Organizations can create custom labels that define the sensitivity and security requirements of their documents. These labels can include visual markings and metadata to indicate the level of protection required.
Automatic Protection: With AIP, protection policies can be set up to automatically apply encryption and access controls to documents and emails based on their labels. This ensures that sensitive information remains protected even when it’s shared outside the organization.
Integration: AIP seamlessly integrates with various Microsoft applications, including Microsoft Office Suite, Outlook, and SharePoint. This integration allows users to apply labels and protection directly within their familiar working environment.
User and Administrator Control: AIP provides both end users and administrators with control over document protection. Users can label documents appropriately, while administrators can configure and enforce protection policies centrally.
External Sharing: AIP enables secure collaboration with external partners. Organizations can define policies that control how external recipients interact with shared documents, such as restricting printing, copying, and forwarding.
Understanding Sensitivity Labels:
Sensitivity Labels, on the other hand, are a more recent addition to the Microsoft 365 suite, aimed at simplifying the classification and protection process while extending it beyond traditional AIP capabilities. Here’s a look at the key aspects of Sensitivity Labels:
Unified Labeling Platform: Sensitivity Labels provide a unified platform for classifying and protecting content across various Microsoft 365 services, including Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Exchange Online. This streamlines the labeling process and ensures consistent protection across different collaboration tools.
Simplified Labeling: Sensitivity Labels offer a user-friendly approach to labeling. Rather than focusing solely on technical aspects like encryption, users can choose from predefined sensitivity levels that align with the organization’s policies.
Built-in Governance: Sensitivity Labels come with built-in governance capabilities, allowing organizations to define protection settings, retention policies, and visual markings as part of the label. This simplifies the process of ensuring compliance with data protection regulations.
Auto-Classification: Leveraging Microsoft’s advanced technologies, Sensitivity Labels can automatically classify content based on its content and context. This is especially useful when dealing with large volumes of unstructured data.
Migration Path: For organizations already using Azure Information Protection, there’s a migration path to transition AIP labels and policies to Sensitivity Labels. This provides a streamlined approach to adopting the newer labeling framework.
Differences Between Azure Information Protection (AIP) and Sensitivity Labels
Complexity vs. Simplicity:
AIP offers a more granular and complex approach to classification and protection, suitable for organizations with intricate security requirements. Sensitivity Labels, on the other hand, provide a simplified and user-friendly approach that’s suitable for a broader range of scenarios.
Integration Scope:
AIP primarily integrates with Microsoft Office applications and offers more extensive protection options. Sensitivity Labels, while still providing protection in Office apps, extend their reach to various other Microsoft 365 services, making them more suitable for modern collaboration needs.
User Experience:
Sensitivity Labels prioritize user experience by offering predefined sensitivity levels and automated classification, reducing the burden on end users to make complex security decisions.
Automation and Intelligence:
Sensitivity Labels leverage automation and AI to assist with content classification and recommendation, which can significantly reduce manual efforts in labeling large volumes of data.
In conclusion, both Azure Information Protection and Sensitivity Labels offer valuable tools for data classification and protection within the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. The choice between the two depends on the organization’s specific security needs, existing infrastructure, and the desired level of complexity in classification and protection policies. Sensitivity Labels shine in their simplicity, automation capabilities, and broad integration, while Azure Information Protection provides a more intricate approach to data protection. Ultimately, the right choice will empower organizations to safeguard their sensitive information effectively while enabling seamless collaboration and productivity.