Microsoft on Monday, October 19, 2026, announced new security features that treat AI agents as potential insider threats. The tools continuously assess each agent's risk and can restrict what it is allowed to do when that risk rises.

The features are part of Microsoft 365 E7 and the company's Project Perception security system. GeekWire reported that they include a continuously updated risk assessment for each agent, based on signals such as what data it can reach and whether its actions are starting to drift from the task it was given. When risk rises, the system can take away an agent's ability to make changes while still letting it read data, require a person to approve a high-stakes step, or shut the agent down.

The approach puts the controls outside the AI model. In an October 10 blog post, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella argued that the controls on AI models need to come from outside the models themselves.…