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Prioritize and Respond to Alerts

Implementation Effort: Medium
This task requires security teams to monitor alerts, assess severity, and coordinate response actions using Microsoft Defender for Cloud and integrated SIEM/SOAR tools.

User Impact: Low
All actions are handled by security operations teams; no direct user involvement is required.

Overview​

Microsoft Defender for APIs generates real-time alerts based on behavioral analytics and threat intelligence. These alerts help security teams detect and respond to suspicious API activity, such as traffic anomalies, payload spikes, or unauthorized access attempts. Alerts are visible in the Microsoft Defender for Cloud portal and can be forwarded to Microsoft Sentinel or other SIEM platforms for centralized triage and response.

Common Alert Types​

  • Suspicious spike in API traffic from a single IP or across the population 1
  • Unusually large request or response payloads 1
  • Unexpected API usage patterns based on learned baselines 1

How to Prioritize and Respond​

  1. Access Alerts: Go to Microsoft Defender for Cloud > Workload protections > API Security.
  2. Review Alert Details: Each alert includes severity, MITRE tactic mapping, and affected resources.
  3. Prioritize: Focus on high-severity alerts or those involving sensitive data or exposed endpoints.
  4. Investigate: Use the alert timeline, traffic patterns, and IP reputation to assess the threat.
  5. Respond:
    • Block or throttle suspicious IPs.
    • Disable or reconfigure vulnerable API endpoints.
    • Trigger automated playbooks via Microsoft Sentinel or Power Automate.
  6. Track and Document: Use the incident management features in Defender for Cloud or Defender XDR to assign, tag, and resolve alerts.

Failing to prioritize and respond to alerts can result in delayed detection and increased risk of data breaches. This capability supports the Zero Trust principle of "Assume breach" by enabling continuous monitoring and rapid response to API threats.

Reference​