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09/06/2026 11:35 pm
TL;DR: Endpoint policy management can extend Group Policy-like targeting to MDM-enrolled and hybrid Azure AD devices while compensating for native gaps in privilege, USB, and application controls, according to Netwrix. The security issue is not migration itself, but whether device governance can stay consistent as management shifts from on-prem to cloud-administered endpoints.
NHIMG editorial — here’s why we think this discussion matters
By the numbers:
- Only 5.7% of organisations have full visibility into their service accounts.
- 97% of NHIs carry excessive privileges, increasing unauthorised access and broadening the attack surface.
- 96% of organisations store secrets outside of secrets managers in vulnerable locations including code, config files, and CI/CD tools.
Questions worth separating out
Q: How should security teams govern endpoint policy when moving from Group Policy to MDM?
A: Teams should first identify which controls must survive the migration unchanged, then test whether the MDM platform can enforce them consistently across all enrolled device states.
Q: Why do local admin rights remain a risk in modern device management?
A: Local admin rights remain risky because cloud management does not remove privilege, it only changes where it is administered.
Practitioner guidance
- Map Group Policy settings to MDM enforcement gaps Inventory the settings that matter most for privilege, device hardening, USB control, and application restriction, then test which ones are enforceable on your actual MDM stack.
- Review standing local admin rights across managed endpoints Identify where helpdesk processes, legacy exceptions, or per-device approvals still leave persistent elevation in place.
- Validate device control against real user populations Test policy targeting across enrolled, hybrid, and remote devices, not only in a pilot group.
What to expect at the briefing
Netwrix's full on-demand demo covers the operational detail this post intentionally leaves for the source:
- The live product walkthrough for migrating Group Policy settings into MDM-managed environments
- Demonstrations of endpoint privilege, USB, and application controls working alongside existing management tools
- Specific examples of managing hybrid Azure AD computers across Intune, WorkspaceONE, and MobileIron
- The practical setup details behind policy targeting and enforcement in modern endpoint estates
👉 Watch Netwrix's on-demand demo on MDM endpoint policy parity →
MDM endpoint policy parity: are your controls keeping up?
Explore further
10/06/2026 1:59 am
Control parity is the real governance test in MDM modernisation. The article is not really about a demo utility, but about whether enterprises can preserve security intent as they move from Group Policy to cloud-managed endpoints. When policy fidelity drops, organisations compensate with exceptions, and exceptions create governance drift. Practitioners should treat parity as an enforceability question, not a migration slogan.
A few things that frame the scale:
- Only 5.7% of organisations have full visibility into their service accounts, according to the Ultimate Guide to NHIs.
- 96% of organisations store secrets outside of secrets managers in vulnerable locations including code, config files, and CI/CD tools.
A question worth separating out:
Q: Who should own endpoint privilege and application policy governance?
A: Ownership should be shared across endpoint management, IAM, and PAM, because the controls affect access, elevation, and post-authentication use of the device. If one team owns only configuration and another owns only identity, gaps appear in review, enforcement, and exception handling.
👉 Read our full editorial: Endpoint policy parity in MDM environments: what it changes
