Microsoft Purview is a unified platform for data security, data governance, risk management, and compliance across your entire data estate, including hybrid, on-premises, and multicloud environments.

Instead of stitching together separate point solutions, Purview gives you a single, integrated approach to:

• Understand and govern data – Build a unified map of your data with Microsoft Purview Data Map, which automatically scans and classifies data across analytics, SaaS, and operational systems. Use Data Catalog so business users can easily discover and use curated, high-quality data for analytics and AI.
• Secure data throughout its lifecycle – Use Information Protection to automatically discover, label, and protect sensitive data across apps, devices, SaaS, and both cloud and on-premises environments. Apply Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policies to reduce data leakage and balance security with productivity.
• Manage risk and compliance – Automate classification and retention with Data Lifecycle Management, manage records with Records Management, support investigations with eDiscovery and Audit, and monitor communications with Communication Compliance.

For security, compliance, and data teams, Purview helps:

• Close exposure gaps by giving visibility into where data lives, how it moves, and who accesses it.
• Reduce manual work using AI and automation for classification, policy enforcement, and investigations.
• Support AI initiatives by governing and protecting data used in analytics and generative AI scenarios, including Copilot for Microsoft 365.

In short, Purview helps you reimagine data protection and governance as a connected, end-to-end capability rather than a collection of disconnected tools.

Microsoft Purview is designed to give you a clear, actionable view of your data estate and to make governed data easier to use.

Key capabilities include:

• Unified data map – Microsoft Purview Data Map captures metadata from hybrid, on-premises, and multicloud sources. It automatically scans and classifies data, and can integrate with existing catalogs via Apache Atlas APIs.
• Business-friendly discovery – With Microsoft Purview Data Catalog, data stewards and owners can curate data assets and define business-friendly terms, policies, and rules. This lets business users search for and access governed data products without needing deep technical knowledge.
• Policy-based access and sharing – Microsoft Purview Data Policy lets you create automated access policies for different user groups (for example, DevOps, data owners, or self-service users). You can control how data is accessed, moved, and shared across sources while keeping it protected.

For organizations investing in analytics and AI, this means:

• Faster discovery of the right data for insights and AI models.
• Clearer understanding of which data is critical and needs higher levels of quality, lineage, and protection.
• More consistent governance across business units and platforms.

The result is a more federated, modern data governance practice that supports innovation while maintaining control.

Microsoft Purview brings together multiple capabilities to help you secure data, manage risk, and meet compliance obligations in a more streamlined way.

1. Protect sensitive data and reduce leakage

• Information Protection – Automatically discover, label, and protect sensitive data (including generative AI data and content in Copilot for Microsoft 365) across apps, services, devices, and clouds. An SDK lets you extend labeling and protection into third-party apps.
• Data Loss Prevention (DLP) – Deploy DLP policies to detect and prevent risky or unauthorized sharing and transfer of sensitive data across endpoints, apps, services, and on-premises files. Policies are designed to be quick to configure and deploy.
• Insider Risk Management – Use machine learning to correlate signals and identify potential insider risks, both accidental and malicious, especially in remote and hybrid work scenarios.

2. Automate compliance and records management

• Data Lifecycle Management – Automates classification and governance at scale using file properties, pattern recognition, 90 built-in sensitive info types, and machine learning. For example, you can automatically apply retention labels to content containing PII such as passport or Social Security numbers.
• Records Management – Stores and retains regulatory, legal, and business-critical records in unalterable, compliant formats, while allowing you to dispose of data that is no longer needed.

3. Support investigations and audits

• eDiscovery – Provides an end-to-end workflow to preserve, collect, analyze, review, and export content for internal and external investigations, including data spillage. Features like deep indexing, email threading, and near-duplicate detection help narrow large data sets. Copilot for Security in Microsoft Purview can summarize review items to speed up tagging and export decisions.
• Audit – Delivers detailed insights into user activity and high-bandwidth data access, and can preserve audit logs for up to 10 years to support forensic investigations and regulatory requirements.

4. Monitor communications and overall compliance posture

• Communication Compliance – Detects potential compliance violations and inappropriate communications (for example, harassing language or adult content), including in AI-generated content and Copilot prompts/responses. It uses privacy-by-design features like role-based access, pseudonymized usernames, and audit logs.
• Compliance Manager – Helps you continuously assess and track compliance effectiveness with pre-built assessments for common standards, step-by-step improvement guidance, and a risk-based compliance score.

Together, these capabilities help you rethink your data protection strategy: you gain a unified view of risk, reduce manual effort through automation, and support both day-to-day operations and high-stakes investigations more confidently.