External Sharing Visibility for Professional Services & Consulting
How professional services & consulting organizations should implement EXT-06 for Microsoft 365 security and compliance.
For professional services & consulting companies using Microsoft 365, external sharing visibility is a security priority. This guide explains how EXT-06 helps professional services & consulting organizations protect their identity infrastructure while meeting industry-specific compliance mandates.
Why Professional Services & Consulting Organizations Need This Control
Professional Services & Consulting organizations face specific regulatory requirements including soc2, iso27001, cis. The EXT-06 control helps address these requirements by:
- External sharing links in SharePoint/OneDrive are tracked
- Anonymous "Anyone with the link" shares are identified
- External sharing activity is reviewed regularly
External sharing is the most common data leakage vector. Without visibility into what is shared externally, you cannot assess your data exposure risk or detect sensitive data being shared inappropriately.
Industry-Specific Considerations
When implementing EXT-06 in a professional services & consulting environment, consider:
- **Regulatory requirements**: soc2, iso27001, cis may mandate specific configurations
- **Risk tolerance**: Professional Services & Consulting organizations typically have moderate to low risk tolerance
- **Audit frequency**: Plan for regular compliance reviews
- **Documentation**: Maintain detailed records for regulatory inspections
How to Configure
EXT-06 requires the following configuration:
- External sharing links in SharePoint/OneDrive are tracked
- Anonymous "Anyone with the link" shares are identified
- External sharing activity is reviewed regularly
Requires SharePoint admin access or audit log analysis
Follow the steps above in your Microsoft Entra admin center to enable this control.
Professional Services Compliance Requirements
Professional Services organizations must comply with these frameworks, all of which address external sharing visibility:
Why This Control Matters for Professional Services
External sharing is the most common data leakage vector. Without visibility into what is shared externally, you cannot assess your data exposure risk or detect sensitive data being shared inappropriately.
Common threats in professional services & consulting:
- • Client data breaches
- • Insider threats from departing consultants
- • Business email compromise
For professional services & consulting organizations, EXT-06 is a key component of a compliant Microsoft 365 security posture. TrueConfig helps you implement and maintain this control while meeting industry-specific requirements.
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