As businesses adopt AI tools like Microsoft 365 Copilot, many owners ask the same question, “How do I make sure AI only works with the information I want it to?”. The answer lies in two Microsoft technologies thatsilently protect your business behind the scenes. These are, InformationProtection and Data Loss Prevention (DLP).
Let’s break these down in simple terms.
Information Protection, think of it as digital labelling and locks. It helps you identify, label, and protect your important business information. These labels act like tags, a few examples would be“Confidential”, “Finance Only”, or “Internal Use”. Applying these labels to certain documents and emails can restrict who can open them, share, or even read them.
Data Loss Prevention monitors how people handle sensitive data and prevent it from being shared in risky ways automatically. Imagine a system that says:
That’s DLP. In simple terms, it prevents sensitive information from being shared, sent, or stored where it shouldn’t be.
Now, the question is, with these security measures in-place, how does this ensure AI tools such as Copilot, cannot access or share data that it shouldn’t?
As mentioned above, with applying Information Protection sensitivity labels, if a document was labelled “Highly Confidential – Finance” and that document was encrypted, Copilot cannot read or summarise it for anyone outside of the finance department, even if the file was accidentally shared. The sensitivity label acts like a digital lock that Copilot or any other AI tools cannot override.
With DLP, if a user types a prompt into Copilot containing sensitive data (credit card numbers, passport numbers etc.) DLP can block Copilot from responding to or from using that information. AI respects permissions, but these technologies add a safety layer on top.
They prevent accidents before they become expensive mistakes. Most dataleaks today happen by accident, someone attaches the wrong file or sendssomething to the wrong person. Information Protection and DLP work in real timeto warn the user, block the action and keep sensitive information safe.
They keep your business compliant, whether you handle customerinformation, financial data, or HR records, these tools help you followindustry regulations without needing specialist knowledge. Security becomesconsistent and automatic rather than relying on people to “be careful”.
Even with strong protection in place, every business owner wants a peaceof mind, especially if something unusual happens with sensitive information.Microsoft gives you built-in reporting tools so you can quickly see whathappened, who was involved, and what action was taken. The following types ofreporting and what they can do are listed below:
With reporting in one place, you gain full visibility, early warning ofrisky behaviour, traceability for compliance and audits and confidence in yourAI adoption.
AI tools like Microsoft 365 Copilot can be transformative, but only whenyour data is protected. Information Protection and Data Loss Prevention makesure AI works for you, not against you.
At Nabra Tech we help businesses secure their environment, fromprotecting users, devices, and most importantly their data. This is the firststep in your journey before safely adopting AI.
For more information contact us at hello@nabratech.co.uk