Enable Defender for App Service
Implementation Effort: Low — Enabling Defender for App Service is a straightforward configuration task in the Azure portal and does not require code or infrastructure changes.
User Impact: Low — This change is transparent to end users and does not require any user interaction or communication.
Overview
Microsoft Defender for App Service provides threat detection and security recommendations for applications hosted on Azure App Service. It monitors for suspicious activity such as remote code execution, privilege escalation, and other attack patterns by analyzing traffic, logs, and the underlying infrastructure.
To enable Defender for App Service:
- Sign in to the Azure Portal>.
- Navigate to Microsoft Defender for Cloud.
- Select Environment settings.
- Choose the relevant subscription.
- On the Defender plans page, toggle App Service to On.
- Click Save 1.
This feature supports App Service plans such as Standard, Premium v2/v3, and App Service Environments (v1–v3) 2. Once enabled, it provides immediate benefits including:
- Secure: Generates security recommendations to harden your App Service resources.
- Detect: Identifies threats by monitoring VM instances, management interfaces, and internal logs 2.
Enabling this protection supports the "Assume Breach" principle of Zero Trust by continuously monitoring for threats and providing actionable alerts. Without it, attacks on web applications may go undetected, increasing the risk of data breaches or service disruption.