Microsoft Entra Identity Platform
A developer platform that helps protect your users and data.
Latest posts
Announcing GA of Bicep templates support for Microsoft Entra ID resources
We’re thrilled to announce that Bicep templates for Microsoft Entra ID resources is generally available from July 29th, 2025. Bicep templates bring declarative infrastructure as code (IaC) capabilities to Microsoft Graph resources. This new capability will initially be available for core Microsoft Entra ID resources. Bicep templates for Microsoft Graph resources allow you to define the tenant infrastructure you want to deploy, such as Microsoft Entra ID groups or applications, in a file, then use the file throughout the development lifecycle to repeatedly deploy your infrastructure. The file uses the Bicep langu...
General Availability of Native Authentication JavaScript SDK
Today we announce that Native Authentication JavaScript SDK for Microsoft Entra External ID is now Generally Available! Initially released in 2024, Native Authentication empowers developers to build sign-in, sign-up and sign-out experiences for single page applications (SPAs) in Entra External ID. How to use native authentication JavaScript SDK You can add native authentication to your single page applications (SPAs) by using the Microsoft Authentication Library (MSAL) for JavaScript with the native authentication extensions. Whenever possible, use MSAL to integrate native authentication for SPA experiences. ...
Now Generally Available: Apple identity provider support for Microsoft Entra External ID
I'm excited to announce that "Sign in with Apple" is now generally available for external tenants in Entra External ID. The feature has been in public preview since February, and many customers have already integrated Apple as an identity provider for their applications.
May 2025: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
Welcome to the May edition of our monthly newsletter, summarizing the latest news and developments in the exciting, ever-evolving world of Microsoft Entra.
Announcing the General Availability of Managed Identities as Federated Identity Credentials in your Entra apps
Announcing the GA of Managed Identities as Federated Identity Credentials for Microsoft Entra. Enhance security by replacing app secrets with managed identities, simplify setup, and enable seamless cross-tenant access to Entra-protected resources like Azure and Microsoft Graph.
April 2025: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
This is the April 2025 edition of our monthly developer update, summarizing the latest news and developments in Microsoft Entra. This month, we bring you feature updates, public previews, announcements, and other important updates. Read on to learn more and make the most of Microsoft Entra.
Announcing the General Availability of OpenID Connect external identity provider support for Microsoft Entra External ID
Discover the new OpenID Connect identity provider support in Microsoft Entra External ID, now generally available. Simplify user sign-in and partner integrations, and improve conversion rates and user satisfaction by federating with external identity providers like Okta, Amazon, Auth0, and Azure AD B2C.
February 2025: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
This is the February 2025 edition of our monthly developer update, summarizing the latest news and developments in Microsoft Entra. This month, we bring you feature updates, public previews, announcements, and other important updates. Read on to learn more and make the most of Microsoft Entra. What went Generally Available (GA) since January 2025? New Public Previews News, updates, and resources What's new in Microsoft Entra? Learn what is new with Microsoft Entra, such as the latest release notes, known issues, bug fixes, deprecation functionality, and upcoming changes. You can find releases sp...
January 2025: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
Welcome to the January 2025 edition of our monthly developer update, summarizing the latest news and developments in Microsoft Entra. This month, we bring you feature updates, public previews, announcements, and other important updates. Read on to learn more and make the most of Microsoft Entra.
Announcing the Public Preview of Apple Identity Provider Support for Microsoft Entra External ID
Announcing the public preview of "Sign in with Apple" support for Microsoft Entra External ID. This feature allows users to sign up and sign in to applications using their Apple ID. Apple joins Google and Facebook as pre-configured social identity providers, supporting Single Sign-On (SSO) through the OAuth framework.
Effortlessly access cloud resources across Azure tenants without using secrets
Announcing the Public Preview of Managed Identities as Federated Identity Credentials for Microsoft Entra. Enhance security by removing secrets, simplify setup, and enable seamless cross-tenant access to Entra-protected resources like Azure and Microsoft Graph.
Integrating Microsoft Entra ID for enhanced security in three-tier architecture
Explore how to secure three-tier architecture with Microsoft Entra ID in this first part of a three-part series. Learn how to implement robust authentication and authorization across client app, API, and data layers, ensuring secure and reliable application design in an Azure cloud environment.
Microsoft Entra External ID Custom URL Domains—now generally available
Discover Microsoft Entra External ID Custom URL Domains, now generally available (GA). Learn how to enhance the authentication experience by branding login endpoints with your own domain name, creating a seamless, secure, and familiar experience for users.
Announcing the Public Preview of OpenID Connect external identity provider support for Microsoft Entra External ID
Discover the new OpenID Connect identity provider support in Microsoft Entra External ID, now in Public Preview. Simplify user sign-in and partner integrations, and improve conversion rates and user satisfaction by federating with external identity providers like Okta, Amazon, Auth0, and Azure AD B2C.
Creating an Azure OpenAI app with Python using External ID authentication
Learn how to securely integrate Azure’s OpenAI services with External ID authentication, using Python, Azure CLI, and Bicep templates. This guide walks you through setting up a secure AI-driven application with streamlined access management on Azure.
Allow your customers to access your copilots by integrating Copilot Studio with Microsoft Entra External ID
Learn how to securely integrate Microsoft Entra External ID with Copilot-powered applications in this step-by-step tutorial. Using the Generic OAuth 2.0 service provider in Copilot Studio, this guide shows you how to grant customers seamless access to your AI copilots.
Integrate data from external sources into Microsoft Entra tokens using the Authentication Events library
Streamline the integration of custom claims into authentication tokens with the new Authentication Events NuGet library. This blog post introduces a NuGet library that simplifies the implementation of custom claims providers, reducing the need for extensive code and minimizing validation errors. Learn how to efficiently fetch and add custom data, like entitlements or profile attributes, from external systems, such as CRMs or legacy databases, while ensuring secure, scalable solutions for your applications.
How to correctly use access tokens and ID tokens in your client application
Explore the differences between access tokens and ID tokens and how to use them securely in your applications. This blog post explains why access tokens should be treated as opaque by client apps, and offers best practices for secure token handling.
Creating an ASP.Net application with External ID using Visual Studio
Integrate Microsoft Entra External ID into your ASP.NET application using Visual Studio. Learn how External ID simplifies user authentication, improves your security posture, and reduces vulnerabilities. Whether you're new to identity management, or more experienced, this tutorial equips you with the guidance to enhance security and efficiency in your applications.
Configuring your Azure Function with External ID as an identity provider
Learn how to configure Microsoft Entra External ID as an identity provider for Azure Functions. This blog post shows you how to integrate External ID seamlessly, allowing you to focus on building app features without worrying about infrastructure or authentication.
Announcing the General Availability (GA) of Native Authentication for Microsoft Entra External ID
Introducing the General Availability (GA) of Native Authentication for Microsoft Entra External ID! A feature that allows you to design and control the sign-in experience within your mobile apps.
Introducing seamless authentication with Power Pages and Microsoft Entra External ID
Announcing the public preview of Microsoft Entra External ID as an identity provider for Microsoft Power Pages, streamlining authentication for your external-facing apps. With Power Pages, you can launch a website in minutes, and External ID provides robust tools to secure external identities, with extensive customization options available.
Sep 2024: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
An overview of the latest updates in Microsoft Entra for Sep 2024. Discover how these new capabilities can be integrated into your projects for optimal performance and security.
Announcing the General Availability (GA) of Microsoft Entra External ID extension for Visual Studio Code
Explore the new Microsoft Entra External ID extension for Visual Studio Code, now Generally Available (GA), created to simplify CIAM integration in your development process. See how this extension provides a smooth experience for setting up External ID applications from within VS Code.
Add enhanced flexibility to your apps with custom claims on Native Authentication
Discover how the custom claims feature, now available in public preview for Native Authentication on Microsoft Entra External ID, enhances your app's authentication process. This new capability allows you to tailor app behavior, based on specific user data, by allowing apps to dynamically add custom claims to authentication tokens via a custom claims provider during user sign-up or sign-in.
How to build customized Power BI dashboards with user insights data in External ID
The user insights feature in Microsoft Entra External ID, now generally available, provides valuable metrics on user behavior through Microsoft Graph APIs and dashboards in the Microsoft Entra admin center. This blog post will guide you through building a customized Power BI dashboard using user insights to analyze metrics like total user count, active users, and MFA usage.
Aug 2024: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
An overview of the latest updates in Microsoft Entra for Aug 2024. Discover how these new capabilities can be integrated into your projects for optimal performance and security.
Securing your Azure deployments with PSRule
PSRule for Azure is a powerful tool designed to validate your Azure Infrastructure as Code (IaC). PSRule runs checks based on the Well-Architected Framework, helping you ensure your Azure solutions follow security best practices. See how to integrate PSRule into your workflow, and catch security issues in your IaC templates early.
Announcing a new learning module for evaluating and building with Microsoft Entra External ID
Announcing a new learning module that helps you explore Microsoft Entra External ID. This module guides you through building a website for an online grocery store, demonstrating how to use External ID for customer sign-ups and sign-ins. It's a perfect starting point if you're new to External ID, offering a hands-on way to create a proof-of-concept project while discovering the platform's features and capabilities.
Add secure user profile editing to your applications with Microsoft Entra External ID
Enhance your application by adding secure user profile editing with Microsoft Entra External ID. Microsoft Entra External ID provides simple integration for secure user authentication and profile management, offering custom branded sign-up experiences and efficient user management. The blog post covers high-level setup steps and links to detailed documentation for further guidance.
Microsoft Entra External ID: Secure, scalable external identity management for your apps and resources
Unlock the potential of secure and efficient identity management with Microsoft Entra External ID. Focusing on two key scenarios, we show how External ID simplifies the process of managing external identities, including business partners, consumers, and customers. Dive in to discover how you can streamline identity management with straightforward, customizable solutions that cater to diverse end-user segments.
Secure your Python applications with Microsoft Entra External ID
Integrate Microsoft Entra External ID with your Python Flask applications for secure user authentication. By leveraging External ID, you can securely manage access for external identities like business partners and customers, create custom branded sign-up experiences, and simplify user management. Follow this step-by-step guide to set up and run a sample Flask application using the Microsoft Authentication Library (MSAL).
July 2024: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
An overview of the latest updates in Microsoft Entra for Jul 2024. Discover how these new capabilities can be integrated into your projects for optimal performance and security.
How to integrate Microsoft Entra External ID and Cerbos for authentication and authorization
This blog post, the second in a three-part series, explores how to build a web application with decoupled authentication and authorization using Microsoft Entra External ID and Cerbos. The focus is on practical implementation, demonstrating how to integrate these tools to secure your web application.
June 2024: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
An overview of the latest updates in Microsoft Entra for Jun 2024. Discover how these new capabilities can be integrated into your projects for optimal performance and security.
Allow your AI Agent to call Microsoft Graph APIs securely with Microsoft Entra ID
Discover an exciting new plugin in the Chat Copilot sample app from the Semantic Kernel team. This plugin lets an AI Agent call Microsoft Graph APIs secured by Microsoft Entra ID using the On-Behalf-Of (OBO) flow.
Combat impersonation using Face Check with Microsoft Entra Verified ID
This blog post highlights the need for better identity verification methods to prevent fraud and impersonation. Microsoft Entra Verified ID's Face Check, showcased at Microsoft Build 2024, enhances security by comparing live selfies with trusted photos, effectively preventing unauthorized access and detecting spoofing techniques.
Celebrating One Billion MSAL.NET Downloads
Celebrating the first billion downloads of the Microsoft Authentication Library for .NET.
May 2024: A look at the latest Microsoft Entra key feature releases, announcements, and updates
An overview of the latest updates in Microsoft Entra for May 2024. Discover how these new capabilities can be integrated into your projects for optimal performance and security.
Adding branded URLs to authentication with Microsoft Entra External ID Custom URL Domains
Announcing the Public Preview of Custom URL Domains for Microsoft Entra External ID. Learn how to replace default Microsoft authentication domains with branded URLs, enhancing customization and user experience. Read on to explore setup steps and key benefits.
Announcing public preview of Bicep templates support for Microsoft Graph
Announcing the public preview of Bicep templates for Microsoft Graph resources. These templates introduce declarative infrastructure-as-code (IaC) capabilities for Microsoft Graph resources, initially targeting core Microsoft Entra ID resources. Define and deploy your tenant infrastructure, such as Entra ID groups or applications, using a Bicep file throughout the development lifecycle.
Get ready for Microsoft Build 2024
Join us at the upcoming Microsoft Build conference from May 21-23, 2024, online (for free) or in person in Seattle. Sit in on identity-focused breakout sessions and demos, while also exploring a broad range of talks on Microsoft’s latest developer tools and technologies. Network with industry leaders and like-minded professionals and create valuable connections at this dynamic event.
Announcing General Availability (GA) of Microsoft Entra External ID
Announcing the General Availability (GA) of Microsoft Entra External ID, a next-generation customer identity and access management (CIAM) solution. Introduced in May 2023, External ID provides improved security, scalability, and user experience for adding authentication to your external facing apps.
Securing identity: Exploring application types and authentication flows
Building on the foundations laid out in an earlier blog post on IAM basics, this blog post dives into the world of application types and authentication flows.
Easy authentication with Azure App Service and Microsoft Entra External ID
Announcing the public preview of an improved configuration experience when using Microsoft Entra External ID with Azure App Service, simplifying authentication and authorization for external-facing apps so you can focus on your application's core features.