October 28, 2026
If your company uses Microsoft 365, you may have heard your IT provider mention your Microsoft Secure Score.
But what is a good score? Should you be aiming for 100%?
Microsoft Secure Score is a measurement within Microsoft 365 that helps organizations evaluate their security posture and identify recommended improvements. A higher score generally indicates that more recommended security controls have been implemented.
But getting to 100% isn’t necessarily the goal.
The real value of Secure Score is using it as a roadmap to identify security gaps, prioritize improvements, and track progress over time.
How Does Microsoft Secure Score Work?
Microsoft evaluates security settings and activities within your Microsoft environment and awards points for recommended security actions.
Depending on your Microsoft services and licensing, recommendations may involve areas such as:
- Multi-Factor Authentication
- Administrator accounts
- Email security
- User access
- Identity protection
- Device security
- Microsoft Defender
- Data protection
As recommended controls are implemented, your score can increase.
Think of it less like a school grade and more like a security improvement checklist.
Is a Secure Score of 100% the Goal?
Not necessarily.
Every business has different technology, workflows, licensing, and security requirements.
Some Microsoft recommendations may not apply to your environment. Others could create unnecessary restrictions or require additional licensing.
That’s why blindly implementing every recommendation simply to increase the number isn’t a good security strategy.
Instead, each recommendation should be evaluated based on:
Risk + Business Impact + Practicality
For example, implementing Multi-Factor Authentication for every employee could be a high-priority improvement.
Another recommendation might provide a relatively small security benefit while creating significant disruption for employees.
The objective is to determine which improvements will meaningfully reduce risk.
What Should Property Management Companies Prioritize?
Property management companies depend heavily on email, cloud applications, shared documents, and mobile access.
That makes several areas particularly important.
Identity Protection
Protect Microsoft 365 accounts with MFA and appropriate access controls.
A stolen password shouldn’t automatically give someone access to company email and information.
Administrator Security
Administrator accounts provide elevated access to your Microsoft environment.
They should receive stronger protection and generally shouldn’t be used for normal day-to-day activities.
Email Protection
Your company employees regularly communicate with clients, vendors, distributors, and other external parties.
That creates opportunities for phishing, fake invoices, and vendor payment fraud.
Microsoft 365 email protections should be properly configured to help identify suspicious messages.
Device Security
Laptops and other devices accessing company information should be properly managed, updated, and protected.
This is especially important for employees working remotely or travelling.
Why Should You Review Secure Score Regularly?
Microsoft 365 isn’t static.
Microsoft introduces new capabilities, your employees change, devices are added, and security threats evolve.
That’s why Secure Score shouldn’t be something you check once and forget.
For many small and midsized organizations, reviewing it quarterly is a practical starting point.
During that review, ask:
- Has our score changed?
- Why did it change?
- What are the highest-priority recommendations?
- Which improvements make sense for our business?
- Are there recommendations we’re intentionally not implementing?
That last question matters. Sometimes choosing not to implement a recommendation is perfectly reasonable, as long as it’s an informed decision.
A Real World Example
Imagine a 25-person company reviews its Microsoft Secure Score.
Several recommendations appear.
One identifies users who aren’t adequately protected with MFA. Another recommends improving administrator account security. A third involves a feature the company doesn’t currently license.
Rather than chasing points, the company prioritizes the first two recommendations because they address meaningful risks.
The third recommendation is documented and reconsidered during future technology planning.
That’s how Secure Score should be used: as a decision-making tool, not a report card.
Secure Score Is Only Part of Cybersecurity
A high Microsoft Secure Score doesn’t mean your business is completely secure.
It primarily evaluates controls within Microsoft’s ecosystem.
Your overall cybersecurity strategy should also consider areas such as:
- Backups and disaster recovery
- Employee security awareness
- Network security
- Third-party applications
- Vendor payment procedures
- Incident response planning
Secure Score is one useful measurement within a much larger cybersecurity strategy.
Use Secure Score to Start Better Conversations
At Techwel, we help businesses throughout the Edmonton Metro Area manage and secure their Microsoft 365 environments, including reviewing security recommendations and determining which improvements make sense for the organization.
Rather than asking your IT provider:
“What’s our Microsoft Secure Score?”
Ask:
“What are the three most important things we could improve in Microsoft 365 right now?”
That’s a much more useful conversation.
Your Secure Score gives you a number. What you do with the recommendations behind that number is what actually improves your security.
Book a Discovery Call with us: https://www.techwelcomputers.com/discoverycall/
