Entra.Chat
Entra.Chat
Podcast Description
Entra Chat is a weekly podcast hosted by Merill Fernando and delivers practical insights for Microsoft administrators and security professionals through conversations with identity experts who've been in the trenches.
Episodes feature seasoned Entra practitioners sharing real-world deployment experiences and Microsoft Entra team members who build the features you use daily.
Get the inside track on best practices, implementation strategies, and upcoming capabilities directly from those who design and deploy Microsoft identity solutions.
Join us for actionable takeaways you can apply immediately in your Microsoft 365, Azure, and Entra environments.
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Entra.Chat, its content and opinions are my (Merill Fernando) own and do not reflect the views of my employer (Microsoft). All postings are provided “AS IS” with no warranties and is not supported by the author. All trademarks and copyrights belong to their owners and are used for identification only. entra.news
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
Focuses on Microsoft Entra, identity management, and security practices with episodes covering topics like 'From Okta to Entra: Migrating 700 Apps in 90 Days' and best practices for implementation strategies. The content emphasizes practical advice directly applicable in Microsoft 365, Azure, and Entra environments.

Entra Chat is a weekly podcast hosted by Merill Fernando and delivers practical insights for Microsoft administrators and security professionals through conversations with identity experts who’ve been in the trenches.
Episodes feature seasoned Entra practitioners sharing real-world deployment experiences and Microsoft Entra team members who build the features you use daily.
Get the inside track on best practices, implementation strategies, and upcoming capabilities directly from those who design and deploy Microsoft identity solutions.
Join us for actionable takeaways you can apply immediately in your Microsoft 365, Azure, and Entra environments.
—
Entra.Chat, its content and opinions are my (Merill Fernando) own and do not reflect the views of my employer (Microsoft). All postings are provided “AS IS” with no warranties and is not supported by the author. All trademarks and copyrights belong to their owners and are used for identification only.
I am back home in Melbourne today, and joining me are Nathan McNulty from Alaska and Daniel Bradley from the UK as we dive into all the massive Entra updates that dropped last month. We are breaking down the controversial shift to syncable passkeys , why your Conditional Access policies might suddenly start blocking apps , and the absolute necessity of moving privileged accounts away from on-prem AD. We’re also geeking out over some incredible new Global Secure Access (GSA) features and how AI is completely transforming the way we work with Graph API. You won’t want to miss the under-the-radar changes that could impact your tenant’s security architecture overnight.
Here’s a quick overview of all the topics we covered in this episode (links below).
Sponsored by:
Scan, Score, and Secure Your Applications in Entra
Application identities represent one of the largest attack surfaces in Entra and are often among the least consistently governed.AppGov Score helps IT and Security teams understand where risk exists. The 24-check assessment evaluates Entra ID application integrations against Microsoft-recommended governance practices, analyzing:
* App registrations and enterprise apps for excessive permissions
* Expired or unmanaged secrets
* Ownerless apps
* Risky consent grants, and
* Privileged service principals
Results are delivered as a clear, defensible risk score with actionable findings. No scripts. No manual inventory. Just a fast, read-only scan that reveals app sprawl, identity misconfigurations, and blast radius so you can prioritize remediation and strengthen your security posture with confidence.
Subscribe with your favorite podcast player or watch on YouTube 👇
About Nathan McNulty
Senior Security Solutions Architect at Patriot Consulting and Microsoft MVP in security. Nathan is the practice lead for identity and has extensive experience with endpoint deployments and everything Entra.
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanmcnulty/
About Daniel Bradley
Senior Solution Architect for CDW down in the UK and an MVP in Identity Security and M365 for Graph API. Daniel specializes in pre-sales, mergers, acquisitions, and the highly technical migration space.
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielbradley2/
🔗 Related Links
* Entra What’s New – https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/entra/fundamentals/whats-new
* Upcoming Conditional Access change: Improved enforcement for policies with resource exclusions – https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft-entra-blog/upcoming-conditional-access-change-improved-enforcement-for-policies-with-resour/4488925
* XDRInternals – https://github.com/MSCloudInternals/XDRInternals
* Passkey Login – https://github.com/nathanmcnulty/nathanmcnulty/blob/main/Entra/passkeys/PasskeyLogin.ps1
* Graph PM – https://graph.pm
📗 Chapters
03:01 Syncable Passkeys & Registration Changes
18:10 Conditional Access Policy Updates
26:35 Blocking Hard Match for Privileged Roles
35:42 External Authentication Methods GA
43:04 Lifecycle Workflows & Admin Units
48:01 Global Secure Access (GSA) BYOD Preview
53:06 New My Account Portal & Authenticator Updates
58:43 AI Skills & Automating Graph API
Podcast Apps
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🤖 GitHub → github.com/merill
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