Introduction
Security is evolving rapidly in the face of exponential data growth, increasingly sophisticated threats, and the emergence of AI-powered operations. To remain competitive, security teams must adopt an AI-based approach to collect, analyze, and act on large volumes of data efficiently. At RSA Conference 2026 (RSAC), Microsoft unveiled the latest innovations in Microsoft Sentinel, designed to enable organizations to work faster, gain better visibility, and defend their environments with AI-ready tools.
Among the new features are:
- AI-driven automated playbooks for Security Operations Center (SOC) management.
- New connectors for accelerated data integration.
- Granular delegated admin privileges (GDAP).
- Advanced role-based access controls (RBAC).
- Data federation enabling direct analysis without duplication.
These features aim to provide security teams with greater control, speed, and clarity in the face of increasing complexity in modern digital environments.
Enhanced Automation Through AI
Sentinel Playbook Generator
The Microsoft Sentinel playbook generator represents a significant advancement in automation. It enables teams to create complex automations, integrate them with various tools to ensure compliant and efficient workflows, while offering built-in testing capability and documentation.
Good to Know
The playbook generator is integrated directly into Microsoft Defender, facilitating adoption by teams.
Example PowerShell Command
Here is a command to generate a report on playbook effectiveness:
1Get-SentinelPlaybookReport -WorkspaceId "<ID_Workspace>" -DetailedSimplified Migration to Sentinel SIEM
The new Sentinel SIEM migration tool offers a guided experience to facilitate the transition from solutions like Splunk or QRadar to Sentinel. This process includes:
Export data from your existing SIEM
Obtain your Splunk or QRadar data using native export tools.
Import and analyze with Sentinel
Load your exports into Sentinel to receive recommendations on analytical rules and required connectors.
1Import-SiemData -Path "C:\Path\To\Data.json" Manage the migration
Validate detection coverage, identify areas to prioritize, and proceed with phased migration.
Tip
Use the integrated detection preview tools to plan your migration effectively.
Permissions Management at Scale
Granular Delegated Admin Privileges (GDAP)
GDAP enables centralized and streamlined permission management in multi-tenant environments. This approach significantly optimizes administrative efforts.
Role-Based Access Controls (RBAC)
With new unified RBAC models and row-level access scoping, multiple SOC teams can work simultaneously while maintaining secure boundaries. Here is a command to assign RBAC roles:
1Set-SentinelRBACPermissions -Scope "TableName" -Role "Reader"Warning
Apply these permissions with precision to avoid compromising sensitive data security.
Connectors and Optimized Ingestion
New Available Connectors
- GitHub audit log connector (GA since March 2026)
- Connector for Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE)
- Enhancements for Entra and Azure Resource Graph
Ingestion Optimization
Two new features allow you to reduce costs and improve the relevance of ingested data:
- Ingestion filtering: Elimination of low-value events.
- Data distribution: Intelligent routing between analysis layers.
Advanced Analysis and Data Federation
Microsoft Fabric now allows you to federate data from Azure Data Lake Storage and Azure Databricks directly in the Sentinel data lake. You can perform complex analysis with KQL, notebooks, and create custom charts without duplicating your data.
PowerShell Data Federation Script
1Add-SentinelFederatedDataSource -Type "AzureDataLake" -Resource "<ResourceID>"Glossary
- SOC: Security Operations Center, operational security management center.
- RBAC: Role-Based Access Control, role-based access control.
- GDAP: Granular Delegated Admin Privileges, granular delegated admin privileges.
- KQL: Kusto Query Language, query language used by Microsoft Sentinel.
