Configuring the SaaS Security API Connector for Microsoft SharePoint

This article explains how to configure the Microsoft SharePoint connector for the SaaS Security API policy for your account and create a SharePoint rule for the Data Protection Policy

The SaaS Security API policy requires a separate license from Cato. Please contact your Cato representative or official reseller for more information.

Note

Note: Please contact SaaSecAPI@catonetworks.com or your official Cato reseller for more information about using the SaaS Security API policy.

Overview of the Microsoft Connectors

Create the connectors for the Microsoft 365 and SharePoint SaaS apps.

Each Microsoft SharePoint app and Azure tenant (according to the 365 app) are subject the Microsoft's rate limiting. For more information, see the Microsoft documentation.

Prerequisites

  • The Microsoft 365 connector requires an admin with the global admin role to give permissions to Cato's SaaS Security API

Required Permissions for the API Connectors for SharePoint

To enable Cato's SaaS Security API to scan assets and content for SharePoint files and folders, the connector gives Cato the following permissions and actions with the SharePoint app:

  • Grant access to the app using Oauth2

  • Receive a token from the app to establish and maintain a secure connection

  • Connect to the Microsoft APIs and fetch data and scan files according to the SaaS Security API Data Protection policy, including:

    • Read items and files in all the sites collections

    • Sign in and read the full profiles of the users

    • Write files in all the sites collections (coming soon)

Working with Microsoft SharePoint API Connectors

This section explains how to create API connectors for Microsoft 365 and SharePoint, and to connect them to your Cato account.

Understanding the API Connectors for Microsoft SharePoint

To enable Cato's SaaS Security API to scan assets and content for Microsoft SharePoint, first you need to configure the Microsoft 365 connector as the parent app to give read permissions for the SharePoint connector. The parent app only has permissions to manage the Microsoft connectors. Afterwards, if necessary, you can create a separate Microsoft 365 connector for each Azure tenant.

Creating the Microsoft 365 Connector

Use the Cato Management Application to create the Microsoft 365 SaaS application connector for the Azure tenant for the Microsoft SharePoint app that your are scanning with SaaS Security API. You must have the correct credentials to authenticate to Microsoft SharePoint app to add it to your Cato account.

Before you can create and configure the connector settings, first you need to enable SaaS Security API for your account.

Create_API_Connector.png

To create the Microsoft 365 parent connector:

  1. From the navigation menu, select Security > SaaS Security API and make sure that the feature is Enabled.

  2. From the navigation pane, select Assets > Integrations and select the Installed SaaS Applications tab.

  3. Click New. The New Connector window opens.

  4. In the New Connector panel, select the Microsoft 365 app.

    New_Microsoft_365_Connector.png

  5. Click Authorize and Save.

    A new browser tab opens to the Microsoft 365 app.

  6. In the new browser tab, authenticate to the Microsoft 365 app:

    1. Select the Microsoft account for the Microsoft 365 app.

      Otherwise there may be a Microsoft authentication error.

    2. Enter the password for the app and approve it.

    3. Accept the permissions to let Cato access the Microsoft 365 app.

    4. The screen shows that you have successfully applied the permissions for the app.

      Success_Connector_Permissions.png

      You can close the browser tab and return to the Cato Management Application.

  7. The Microsoft 365 SaaS application is added to the Installed SaaS Applications page.

    GitHub_Installed_SaaS_Apps.png

Creating the Microsoft SharePoint Connector

The Microsoft SharePoint connector lets the Cato SaaS API engine scan emails for the content that you define in the Data Protection policy.

To create the connector for Microsoft SharePoint:

  1. From the navigation pane, select Assets > Integrations and select the Installed SaaS Applications tab.

  2. Click New. The New Connector window opens.

  3. In SaaS Application, select Microsoft SharePoint.

  4. In Connector Tenant, select the parent Microsoft 365 connector you created in the previous section.

  5. Enter the Connector Name.

  6. In Permissions, select Read/Write.

  7. Click Save. The Cato connector app is created. This can take up to 30 seconds.

    SaaS_Security_API_App_Created.png

  8. Click Authorize to authorize creation of the connector.

    SaaS_Security_API_Authorize.png

  9. In a new browser tab, authenticate to the SharePoint app.

    1. Select the Microsoft account for the SharePoint app.

    2. Enter the password for the app and approve it.

    3. Accept the permissions for Cato to access the app.

      Sharepoint_Permissions.png

    4. The screen shows that you have successfully applied the permissions for the app.

      You can close the browser tab and return to the Cato Management Application.

      It can take Microsoft SharePoint several seconds to process the request, so if you receive an error, refresh the browser.

  10. The SharePoint SaaS application is added to the Installed SaaS Applications screen.

    SaaS_Security_API_InstalledSaaSApps_SharePoint.png

Understanding the Connector Status

The Status column on the Connectors Settings screen shows the status of the connection between the Microsoft app and your Cato account. These are the explanations of the statuses:

  • Connected - Your account is connected to the app and working correctly

  • Connection Warning - Some of the users in the Azure tenant are not configured correctly to support Cato's SaaS Security API (such as, no email address defined for the user). Please open a ticket with Support.

  • Connection Error - Connectivity or permissions issue, or rate limiting (Microsoft limitation) with the Microsoft connector. Please open a ticket with Support.

Adding SharePoint Rules to the Data Protection Policy

This section explains how to use the Data Protection policy to monitor and manage the actions that your users perform with SharePoint files. For example, sharing files, creating new files, uploading and so on.

For more about DLP Content Profiles, see Creating DLP Content Profiles.

Understanding SharePoint Actions

When you create a Data Protection rule, you can define different actions to monitor or remediate the policy violations when the rule is matched. Each action automatically generates an event, and you can also choose to receive an email notification. For more about SaaS Security API events, see below Analyzing SaaS Security API Events.

These are the actions you can set for the Data Protection engine to perform when a rule is matched:

  • Monitor - Generates an event to let you monitor traffic that matches the rule.

  • Quarantine - When a user tries to upload a file, the SaaS Security API engine moves it to a quarantine folder and then users can no longer access it. The SharePoint admin can access the file in the quarantine folder. For information about configuring quarantine folders, see below Preparing for File Quarantine.

Preparing for File Quarantine

Configure quarantine folders for Data Protection and Threat Prevention rules, and define the SharePoint admin with permissions to access the folders. You can configure quarantine folders for each SharePoint admin for the tenant. When you configure the folders, you can then create rules with the Quarantine action, and define the folder that the file is moved to.

SaaS_Security_API_Settings_SharePoint.png

To configure quarantine folders for a SharePoint admin:

  1. From the navigation pane, select Security > SaaS Security API and select the Settings tab.

  2. Click New. The Quarantine Folder panel opens.

    SaaS_Security_API_Settings_Onedrive_Quarantine_Folder.png

  3. Select the SharePoint application connector.

  4. Select the SharePoint admin to have access to these quarantine folders.

  5. Click Save.

    A Data Protection folder and a Threat Prevention folder are created for the admin, and can be configured in rules with the Quarantine action. The folders are named with the admin's email address, and located in the following SharePoint directories:

    • Data Protection folder: Cato_Qarantine/Cato_Qarantine_DataProtection

    • Threat Prevention folder: Cato_Qarantine/Cato_Qarantine_ThreatPrevention

Configuring SharePoint Rules

Use the Data Protection page to add the SaaS application rules in your Data Protection policy.

Create a Data Protection rule to define the traffic that is scanned by SaaS Security API. Create separate rules for each SaaS app connector, and then define the criteria which determines which traffic is scanned.

Scanned files also include Team and OneNote files that are shared with SharePoint.

For more information about the SharePoint rule settings, see below Understanding the SharePoint Rules.

SharePoint_Rule.png

To create a new Data Protection rule for the SharePoint app:

  1. From the navigation pane, select Security > SaaS Security API and select or expand Data Protection.

  2. Click New. The New Rule panel opens.

  3. In Application Connector, select the SharePoint app.

  4. In the General section, enter the settings for the rule.

  5. In Owner, select one or more SharePoint file owners (default value is Any).

    When you select multiple owners, there is an OR relationship between them.

  6. In Sharing Options, select one or more file permission types (default value is Any).

    When you select multiple options, there is an OR relationship between them.

  7. In Attachments, define the criteria to specify the files which are scanned (the default setting is to scan all files).

  8. In Content Profile, select the DLP Content Profile for this rule.

    For more about DLP Content Profiles, see Creating DLP Content Profiles.

  9. Select an Action.

    For the Quarantine action, select a Quarantine folder path. For more about quarantine folders, see above Preparing for File Quarantine.

  10. (Optional) Configure tracking options to generate Events and Send Notifications.

    For more information about notifications, see the relevant article for Subscription Groups, Mailing Lists, and Alert Integrations in the Alerts section.

  11. Click Save. The rule is added to the Data Protection policy.

Understanding the SharePoint Rules

This section explains how to define the settings for the Data Protection rules to scan the correct SharePoint traffic. Each rule can be defined according to the following criteria:

  • Owner - Individual sites, or Azure types of users that are the owners of the relevant SharePoint directories (default value is Any)

  • Sharing Options - Select the types of file sharing permissions that match this rule (default value is Any)

    For example, to monitor files that are shared with any external users, select External Link.

  • Attachments - Criteria for attachments that are scanned (default value is all attachments)

    • File Type

    • File Name

    • File Size (maximum file size is 100 MB)

  • Content Profile - DLP Content Profile that defines the DLP content inspection (Security > DLP Configuration > Content Profile)

  • Actions - Select if you want to generate an event when the rule is matched

Defining Files or Attachments for a Rule

You can define specific files (or attachments) for a rule and limit the SaaS API engine to only scan the specified files to see if they match the DLP Content Profile.

When you add multiple files to a rule, select the relationship between them:

  • Satisfy any (OR) - Match only one of the File Types in the rule

  • Satisfy all (AND) - Match all the File Types in the rule (otherwise, the rule is ignored)

You can use the File Name setting in a rule to define the exact file name or use wildcards to define keywords. For example, you can define the File Name as internal to match all file names that contain the word internal.

Working with Ordered Data Protection Rules

The SaaS Security API engine inspects the data sequentially, and checks to see if it matches a rule. If the data does not match a rule, then it is not inspected. Rules that are at the top of the rulebase have a higher priority and they are applied before the rules lower down in the rulebase. Each type of application or connector is only applied to the data once.

Best Practice - To maximize the efficiency of your rulebase, we recommend that for each connector type, rules for specific users have a higher priority than rules that apply to Any users.

For example, if the data matches a connector in rule #2, the data is inspected by the SaaS Security API engine. The engine does not continue to apply rules #3 and below for the same connector. However, the data could match a lower priority rule with a different connector.

Adding Threat Protection to the Connector

You can create Threat Protection rules for the connector to scan files and attachment for malware and viruses using the Anti-Malware and Next Gen Anti-Malware engines that are enabled for your account. The SaaS Security API engine scans the connector traffic and applies the action and tracking options that you configure for the rule:

  • Monitor the traffic (block will be supported soon)

  • Generate events

  • Send email notifications

When you create a SaaS Security API Threat Protection rule, the Anti-Malware engines that are enabled for your account (Security > Anti-Malware) perform malware scans on the files that are sent for that connector application.

The following screenshot shows a Threat Protection rule for the OneDrive connector that scans files sent by Internal users or Guests:

CAS_Threat_Protection.png

Creating an Exception for a File

Sometimes there is file blocked by Cato's SaaS Security API engines that you know is safe, and you need to allow it in the network. The Events page lets you use the file hash to create exceptions that bypass the Threat Protection scans. After you open an event for the specific file that was blocked, click the file hash to open the Exception Configuration panel and add the file as an exception for the account. You can choose the time duration for the file exception, or configure the exception to last forever.

File Exceptions for Anti-Malware and SaaS Security API

File exceptions apply across the Anti-Malware and SaaS Security API Threat Protection policies. When you create exceptions from Anti-Malware and NG Anti-Malware events, these exceptions also apply to the SaaS Security API Threat Protection policy. Similarly, when you create file exceptions from SaaS Security API Anti-Malware events, the exceptions also apply to the Anti-Malware policy. The full file exception list is shown on both the Anti-Malware page and the SaaS Security API Threat Protection page.

To create an exception for a file:

  1. From the navigation menu, select Monitoring > Events.

  2. Filter for the event using the Sub-Type of SaaS Security API Anti Malware.

  3. From the Time column, expand the event.

  4. In the event, click the File Hash link.

    The Exception Configuration panel opens.

    exception_configuration.png

  5. From the Duration drop-down menu, select how long the file is excluded from the Anti-Malware and NG Anti-Malware engines.

    To create a permanent exception, select Forever.

  6. Click Apply.

    The exception is created and added to the File Exceptions section in the Threat Protection tab, and in the Anti-Malware page.

    AM_FileExceptions.png

Removing a File Exception

Remove an exception for the Threat Protection policy when it is no longer necessary.

To remove file exceptions for the Threat Protection policy:

  1. From the navigation menu, click Security > SaaS Security API.

  2. Select the Threat Protection tab.

  3. In the File Exceptions section, click Delete.png for the exception you want to remove.

  4. Click Save.

    The exception is removed.

Analyzing SaaS Security API Events

The Monitoring > Events screen shows all the SaaS Security API events for your account. The powerful search tools let you drill-down and identify the few events that contain the relevant data that you need.

SaaS Security API events can be identified by the following fields:

  • Event Type - Security

  • Sub-Type - SaaS Security API Data Protection and SaaS Security API Anti Malware

You can learn more about using the Events screen here. You can use the SaaS Security API Data Protection preset to filter the events.

Explaining the SaaS Security API Events Fields

Field Name

Description

Collaborators

Email addresses of the users that received the file

Connector Name

Name for the connector that is defined for the rule

Connector Type

SaaS app that is defined for this connector

DLP Profile

DLP Content Profile that generated this event

File Name

Name of the attached file

Matched Data Types

Data Types in the Content Profile that matched the rule

Parent Connector Type

Parent Microsoft 365 connector

Rule

Name of the rule in the Data Protection policy

Owner

File owner

Severity

Severity defined for the rule

Sharing Scope

Sharing Options for the SharePoint file

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