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  2. Microsoft Intune
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Intune security baselines, UAE

Deploying the Microsoft baseline does not make you CIS compliant. Microsoft says so directly.

Asked whether the Intune security baselines are CIS or NIST compliant, Microsoft answers strictly speaking no, noting there is no one-to-one mapping. They are an excellent starting point built by the same team that writes the group policy baselines, and they are not a certification.

Book a baseline reviewSee the available baselines
Intune security baselines for UAE organisations
  • Not CISMicrosoft own answer, stated plainly
  • Most restrictiveBaseline defaults, by design
  • Not for VDIThe Defender baseline, per Microsoft
  • Read-onlyOlder profile versions, once superseded
The compliance conversation this page exists to correct

A baseline is a starting point, not a certification.

This comes up constantly, usually when somebody has told a client or an auditor that the estate is CIS hardened because a baseline was deployed.

  • Microsoft answers the question directly. Asked whether the Intune security baselines are CIS or NIST compliant, the published answer is strictly speaking no, with the explanation that Microsoft consults organisations such as CIS but there is no one-to-one mapping between being CIS compliant and the Microsoft baselines.
  • Microsoft also explains the relationship honestly: its recommendations come from engagement with enterprise customers and external agencies including the Department of Defense and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, those organisations have their own recommendations that closely mirror Microsoft, and many customers use the Intune baselines as a starting point and then customise.
  • So the accurate statement is that your estate is configured against the Microsoft recommended security baseline, which is a defensible and substantial position. The inaccurate statement is that it is CIS compliant, and that one will not survive a competent auditor.
  • If a specific standard is genuinely required, the baseline is where you start and a measured assessment against that standard is what you actually need. Defender Vulnerability Management, for instance, supports baseline profiles measured against the Center for Internet Security benchmarks and the Security Technical Implementation Guides specifically.
Ask what your estate can honestly be said to meet
What they are

Eight things about security baselines that determine how you should use them.

Microsoft describes each baseline as a group of preconfigured Windows settings that apply and enforce granular security settings recommended by the relevant security teams, which you can customise to enforce only the settings and values you require. They apply to Windows 11 and Windows 10 version 1809 and later.

They are not CIS or NIST compliance, and Microsoft says so

Asked directly whether the Intune security baselines are CIS or NIST compliant, Microsoft answers strictly speaking no, explaining that the security team consults organisations such as CIS to compile its recommendations but there is no one-to-one mapping between being CIS compliant and the Microsoft baselines. If a client or an auditor asks for CIS, deploying the baseline is a good start and it is not the answer.

The defaults are the most restrictive, deliberately

Microsoft states that in almost all scenarios the default settings in the security baselines are the most restrictive, and that you should confirm they do not conflict with other policy settings or features in your environment. That is the correct design for a baseline and it is also why assigning one broadly without validation is how a security improvement becomes an outage.

The Defender baseline is not for virtual desktops

Microsoft states the Microsoft Defender for Endpoint security baseline is optimised for physical devices and is currently not recommended for virtual machines or virtual desktop endpoints, because certain baseline settings can affect remote interactive sessions in virtualised environments. For any organisation running Azure Virtual Desktop or Windows 365 alongside physical machines, that is a scoping decision rather than a footnote.

Baselines can disagree with each other

Microsoft is explicit that separate baseline types, giving the Windows baseline and the Defender baseline as the example, may include the same settings with different default values, and that Intune cannot determine which configuration is best for you. Deploying two baselines without reviewing the overlap produces conflicts that have to be investigated, and they are not always obvious.

Old versions become read-only once superseded

When a new version becomes available, settings in profiles based on older versions become read-only. You can keep using those profiles and edit their name, description and assignments, but you cannot change their settings configuration or create new profiles on the old version. There is a built-in option to move a profile to a newer version rather than rebuilding it, which is the route to use.

Nine baseline families, including some people do not know exist

Security Baseline for Windows 10 and later, the Microsoft Defender for Endpoint baseline, Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise, Microsoft Edge, HoloLens 2 in advanced and standard variants, a Windows 365 Security Baseline, and a local AI agent baseline currently in preview. The Windows 365 and Microsoft 365 Apps baselines in particular are routinely overlooked by organisations that deployed the Windows one and stopped.

The same team, and almost the same settings as group policy

Microsoft states the same security team chose and organised the settings for each baseline, that Intune includes all the relevant settings, and that the only exclusions are settings specific to an on-premises domain controller. All other settings are the same. For an organisation migrating from group policy, that continuity is a genuine argument rather than a marketing one.

A local AI agent baseline exists, in preview

Microsoft lists a local AI agent baseline in preview, which is an early indication of where endpoint hardening is heading. Microsoft also states plainly that it does not recommend using preview versions of security baselines in a production environment, because the settings might change over the course of the preview. Worth knowing about, not worth deploying yet.

How we approach it

Four things that make baselines a maintained control rather than a one-off.

Baselines are among the highest value configurations available in Intune and among the easiest to deploy once, forget, and then misdescribe.

We state what your estate actually meets

Configured against the Microsoft recommended security baseline is accurate, defensible and substantial. CIS compliant is not, and Microsoft says so in its own documentation. Getting that language right protects you when a client questionnaire, an auditor or an insurer asks, and it costs nothing except being precise.

We validate before assigning, because the defaults are the strictest

Microsoft states the baseline defaults are the most restrictive in almost all scenarios and that you should confirm they do not conflict with other policy or features, giving a firewall and delivery optimization example. We pilot, we look for the conflicts with existing configuration profiles, and we document every deviation from default with the reason for it.

We scope the Defender baseline away from virtual desktops

Microsoft states it is optimised for physical devices and not currently recommended for virtual machines or virtual desktop endpoints, because certain settings can affect remote interactive sessions. Organisations running Azure Virtual Desktop or Windows 365 alongside physical machines need that separation built into the assignment rather than discovered through session problems.

We put version management on a cycle

New versions publish, old profiles become read-only, and estates end up years behind on a baseline nobody realised had moved. The admin center shows how many versions exist and when the latest published, and there is a built-in option to move a profile to a newer version. Reviewing that on a schedule is what stops a baseline becoming a historical artefact.

Where this matters most

Six UAE situations where baselines need attention.

Most of these organisations have already deployed a baseline. The problem is what it covers, what it conflicts with, and what has been said about it.

A firm that has told a client it is CIS hardened

Extremely common, and usually said in good faith after deploying the Windows baseline. Microsoft published answer is that the baselines are not strictly CIS or NIST compliant and there is no one-to-one mapping. Correcting the claim before an auditor does is a considerably better outcome, and the underlying position is strong enough to state accurately.

An organisation that deployed one baseline and stopped

The Windows baseline is applied and the Microsoft 365 Apps baseline, the Edge baseline and, where Cloud PCs exist, the Windows 365 baseline are not. That leaves the applications people spend their day in, the browser through which most attacks arrive, and the virtual desktops entirely unhardened, while the organisation believes hardening is done.

An estate mixing physical devices and virtual desktops

Where the Defender for Endpoint baseline has been assigned broadly. Microsoft states it is optimised for physical devices, is not currently recommended for virtual machines or virtual desktop endpoints, and that certain settings can affect remote interactive sessions. The symptom is usually intermittent session problems that nobody connects to a baseline assignment.

A business where the baseline broke something

Because the defaults are the most restrictive by design and were assigned without validation. Microsoft even gives the shape of the problem: firewall defaults that may not merge connection security rules and local policy rules with the managed rules, which is worth validating if delivery optimization is in use. The fix is a documented deviation, not abandoning the baseline.

An organisation migrating from group policy

Where the question is whether the cloud equivalent is really as good. Microsoft states the same security team chose and organised the settings, that Intune includes all the relevant settings, and that the only exclusions are those specific to an on-premises domain controller. That is a considerably stronger reassurance than a general claim of parity.

An estate whose baseline profiles are years old

New baseline versions publish regularly, older profiles become read-only, and nobody notices because the profiles keep working. The admin center shows the number of versions available and a last published date, and profiles can be moved to a newer version without rebuilding them. Most estates we assess are at least one major version behind.

Three positions

How Windows hardening is actually done in UAE organisations.

The middle column, one baseline deployed with defaults and never revisited, is the most common and it is genuinely better than nothing while being considerably less than people believe it is.
Windows hardened against a recommended set
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceYes
Nothing configuredNo
Office applications hardened
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceNo
Nothing configuredNo
Browser hardened
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceNo
Nothing configuredNo
Cloud PCs on the right baseline
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceNo
Nothing configuredNot applicable
Virtual desktops excluded from the Defender baseline
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceUnlikely
Nothing configuredNot applicable
Conflicts between baselines identified
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceNo
Nothing configuredNot applicable
Profiles moved to current baseline versions
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceNo
Nothing configuredNot applicable
Deviations from default documented
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceNo
Nothing configuredNot applicable
Compliance claim accurately stated
Baselines managedYes
One baseline, deployed onceOften overstated
Nothing configuredNot applicable
Frequency in the UAE market
Baselines managedUncommon
One baseline, deployed onceCommon
Nothing configuredCommon in SMEs
Feature
Baselines managed
One baseline, deployed once
Nothing configured
Windows hardened against a recommended set
YesYesNo
Office applications hardened
YesNoNo
Browser hardened
YesNoNo
Cloud PCs on the right baseline
YesNoNot applicable
Virtual desktops excluded from the Defender baseline
YesUnlikelyNot applicable
Conflicts between baselines identified
YesNoNot applicable
Profiles moved to current baseline versions
YesNoNot applicable
Deviations from default documented
YesNoNot applicable
Compliance claim accurately stated
YesOften overstatedNot applicable
Frequency in the UAE market
UncommonCommonCommon in SMEs
The baselines available

Nine families, and which ones most organisations have missed.

Reproduced from the published list of available baselines. Most organisations deploy the first one and stop, which leaves the applications, the browser and the Cloud PCs unhardened.
BaselineWhat it covers, and whether it is commonly deployed
Security Baseline for Windows 10 and laterThe core Windows baseline. Usually the only one deployed.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint baselineDefender configuration. Not recommended for virtual machines or virtual desktop endpoints.
Microsoft 365 Apps for EnterpriseThe Office application baseline. Frequently overlooked entirely.
Microsoft EdgeBrowser hardening. Also frequently overlooked.
Windows 365 Security BaselineFor Cloud PCs specifically, rather than reusing the physical device baseline.
HoloLens 2, standard and advancedTwo variants, for organisations with mixed reality devices.
Local AI agent baselineIn preview. Microsoft advises against preview baselines in production.
STIG audit baselineAudit only, and available to US government cloud tenants only, so not applicable here.
How a review runs

Five steps, and the language question comes first.

Typically two to four weeks including a pilot. The technical work is modest. Establishing what can honestly be claimed, and validating against your existing configuration, is where the value is.
  1. 1

    Establish what is deployed and what has been claimed

    Which baselines exist, which versions the profiles use, which devices they are assigned to, and what has been said internally or to clients about compliance. That last point is frequently where the most important correction is, given Microsoft own answer on CIS and NIST.

  2. 2

    Identify the gaps in coverage

    Almost always the Microsoft 365 Apps baseline and the Edge baseline, and the Windows 365 baseline where Cloud PCs exist. Those cover the applications people work in and the browser through which most attacks arrive, which makes them a larger gap than their obscurity suggests.

  3. 3

    Find the conflicts before assigning anything new

    Between baselines, since Microsoft states different baseline types can set the same setting to different defaults and cannot resolve that for you, and between baselines and your existing device configuration profiles, which frequently manage the same settings. Baseline monitoring provides per-setting status to work through.

  4. 4

    Pilot, then document every deviation

    Because the defaults are the most restrictive in almost all scenarios. Where a setting has to be relaxed, that deviation and its reason belong in a document, because that record is what an auditor asks for and what stops somebody re-tightening it later without knowing why it was changed.

  5. 5

    Set a version review cycle

    New versions publish, old profiles go read-only, and nothing announces it. A scheduled check of the last published date and the versions in use, with the built-in option used to move profiles forward rather than rebuilding them, is what keeps this current rather than historical.

Straight answers

What organisations ask about Intune security baselines.

No, and Microsoft answers this directly in its own documentation. Asked whether the Intune security baselines are CIS or NIST compliant, the published answer is strictly speaking no, with the explanation that the security team consults organisations such as CIS to compile its recommendations but there is no one-to-one mapping between being CIS compliant and the Microsoft baselines.

That your estate is configured against the Microsoft recommended security baseline, which is a substantial and defensible position. Microsoft describes its recommendations as coming from engagement with enterprise customers and external agencies including the Department of Defense and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and notes those organisations have their own recommendations that closely mirror Microsoft. Similar, and not the same thing as certified.

Deliberately, and Microsoft is explicit: in almost all scenarios the default settings in the security baselines are the most restrictive, and you should confirm they do not conflict with other policy settings or features in your environment. That is correct behaviour for a baseline and it is why broad assignment without validation is how a security improvement becomes a support incident.

Nine families. The Security Baseline for Windows 10 and later, the Microsoft Defender for Endpoint baseline, Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise, Microsoft Edge, HoloLens 2 in standard and advanced variants, a Windows 365 Security Baseline, a local AI agent baseline in preview, and a Security Technical Implementation Guide audit baseline that is available only to United States government cloud tenants and therefore not applicable to commercial tenants here.

It is a good start and it leaves gaps. The Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise baseline covers the applications people work in all day. The Edge baseline covers the browser through which most attacks arrive. And if you run Cloud PCs, there is a Windows 365 baseline specifically for them. In our experience organisations deploy the Windows baseline and are unaware the others exist.

Microsoft advises against it. The Microsoft Defender for Endpoint security baseline is described as optimised for physical devices and not currently recommended for virtual machines or virtual desktop endpoints, because certain baseline settings can affect remote interactive sessions in virtualised environments. For a mixed estate that means the assignment needs to exclude those devices deliberately.

You have a conflict to resolve, and Microsoft is upfront that it cannot resolve it for you. Separate baseline types, with the Windows baseline and the Defender baseline given as the example, may include the same settings with different default values, because each is preconfigured with recommendations specific to its own product. Reviewing the overlap before deploying both is the only way to avoid it.

They can, and Microsoft says so: security baselines often manage the same settings you might set with device configuration profiles or other policy types. Baseline monitoring provides per-setting status which is the practical tool for finding these, and it is worth working through before a broad assignment rather than after somebody reports that a setting is not applying.

Because a newer version has published. Microsoft states that when a new version becomes available, settings in profiles based on older versions become read-only. You can continue using those profiles and edit their name, description and assignments, but not their settings configuration, and you cannot create new profiles on the older version. There is a built-in option to move an existing profile to a newer version.

The security baselines list in the Intune admin center shows each baseline template, how many of your profiles use it, how many separate versions of that baseline type exist, and a last published date identifying when the latest version became available. Selecting a baseline and choosing versions shows which versions your profiles are actually on. It is a two minute check that most estates have never done.

Not in production. Microsoft states plainly that it does not recommend using preview versions of security baselines in a production environment, because the settings in a preview baseline might change over the course of the preview. The local AI agent baseline is currently in preview, which makes it worth knowing about and not worth deploying to devices people depend on.

Almost. Microsoft states the same security team chose and organised the settings for each baseline, that Intune includes all the relevant settings, and that some settings in the group policy baseline specific to an on-premises domain controller are excluded from the Intune recommendations, with all other settings the same. For anyone migrating from group policy that is a meaningful reassurance.

Yes, and Microsoft expects you to. Each baseline can be customised to enforce only the settings and values you require, and Microsoft notes that many customers use the Intune baseline recommendations as a starting point and then customise them to meet their own IT and security demands. What matters is that every deviation from the default is documented with the reason, because that record is what an audit conversation needs.

Then you need something that measures against those standards rather than a baseline that resembles them. Defender Vulnerability Management provides customisable baseline profiles measuring compliance against established benchmarks including the Center for Internet Security benchmarks and the Security Technical Implementation Guides, which is a different capability from the Intune security baselines and the right one for that requirement.

We scope per organisation, typically two to four weeks including a pilot and the conflict review. What we will do free in the first conversation is tell you which baselines you have deployed, which versions your profiles are on, and whether anything your organisation has said about compliance needs correcting, since that last one is usually the most valuable finding.
Before deploying

Fifteen questions worth answering first.

The first group is what you are actually trying to achieve. The second is the validation that prevents an outage. The third is the ongoing management, which is where baselines quietly go stale.

What you are achieving

  • Has anybody claimed CIS or NIST compliance?
    Microsoft answers that question with a no.
  • Is a specific standard actually required?
    If so, a measured assessment is what you need.
  • Which baselines are already deployed?
    Usually the Windows one, and nothing else.
  • Are your Office applications and browser hardened?
    Separate baselines exist for both.
  • Do you have Cloud PCs?
    There is a Windows 365 baseline for them.

Validation

  • Do you run virtual machines or virtual desktops?
    The Defender baseline is not recommended for those.
  • Do two baselines set the same setting differently?
    Microsoft says this happens and cannot be resolved for you.
  • Do baselines conflict with your configuration profiles?
    They frequently manage the same settings.
  • Are you using delivery optimization?
    Microsoft names it in a firewall configuration example.
  • Has this been piloted before broad assignment?
    Defaults are the most restrictive by design.

Ongoing management

  • Which baseline version are your profiles on?
    Older versions become read-only once superseded.
  • Do you know when a new version publishes?
    The admin center shows a last published date.
  • Who reviews and moves profiles to new versions?
    There is a built-in option to change version.
  • Are any profiles on a preview baseline?
    Microsoft advises against that in production.
  • Are per-setting conflicts being monitored?
    Baseline monitoring shows per-setting status.
Related reading

The pages around this one.

Defender Vulnerability Management

Where CIS and STIG benchmark compliance is actually measured, as opposed to approximated by a baseline.

Learn more

Microsoft Intune

The platform these are configured in, alongside configuration profiles, compliance and application deployment.

Learn more

BitLocker management

Where a security baseline can silently block silent encryption, and the specific setting to check.

Learn more
Next step

Check which baseline versions your profiles are actually on.

The admin center shows how many versions exist and when the latest published. Most estates we assess are at least one major version behind, on a profile that has quietly become read-only, while believing hardening is current.

Book a baseline reviewCall +971 56 613 2743

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