Defence 365 - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Defence 365 is a Microsoft 365 platform adjusted for the Defence Team. Defence 365 (D365)/Microsoft 365, including Office 365 and SharePoint Online, is a cloud-based subscription suite offering online productivity tools. Key software services include:

• Email: Outlook, Exchange Online
• Hosted tools: Teams, SharePoint, Office Web Apps
• Office apps: Desktop versions of Office applications
• Collaboration tools: OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams, Viva Engage

Microsoft Teams is a collaborative toolset to help you and your colleagues communicate when not in the office. You can use Teams to hold video conference meetings or to share transitory information. Visit Teams Central (Accessible only on the National Defence network) to learn more.

DND has prepared a list of user guides and training videos to assist users in this transition which are available from the Training page on Defence 365 Portal (Accessible only on the National Defence network).

Defence 365’s environment, including Teams, was tailored to meet the Department’s security needs and has undergone thorough security assessments by the Digital Service Group (DSG).

Defence 365 is a highly secure platform, enabling personnel to remotely work from both their unmanaged/personal and government-issued devices. A number of security measures have been included in this solution, such as security configurations and monitoring capabilities, which help limit information flow to untrusted devices.

The protection of DND/CAF information is the responsibility of all personnel. As such, user awareness guidance has been made easily accessible to Defence Team members to ensure the proper handling of DND/CAF information. See D365 Security Directives for Users (Accessible only on the National Defence network) for more information

DND/CAF recommends that individuals employ Defence 365 for business activities. By all joining a common Cloud environment, the Defence Team will be able to better leverage collaboration tools and provide a common and supported platform for all personnel. Other platforms are not assessed for security and must be used only with Unclassified and approved information. Over time, use of these platforms can put DND/CAF information at risk.

The list of things you can use Defence 365 for includes, but is not limited to:

• Communication with colleagues through Teams voice and video meetings as well as live events (virtual town halls);
• Participants can join Teams meetings by phone;
• Communicate with colleagues using online email;
• Interdepartmental chat between Other Government Departments (OGD);
• Web enabled real-time document co-authoring and collaboration
• Conduct virtual meetings and discuss content up to and including Protected B (PB) under strict security limitations. Learn more about meeting security on the D365 Security page.

Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge are the recommended web browsers.

Defence 365 is a secure platform that enables personnel to work remotely from both their unmanaged/personal and government-issued devices. Which platform personnel primarily use will depend on the nature of the work, the discretion of their manager and, in some situations, personal preference.

To start using your personal/unmanaged device to access D365 you need to:

• Register your device using the Intune Company Portal app
• Enable passwordless sign-in

Follow the appropriate guide below to register your unmanaged/personal devices with Intune and enable passwordless sign-in.

• iOS User Guide
• Android User Guide
• MacOS User Guide
• Windows User Guide

Users with DWAN access:

• New hires to DND/CAF: approximately 48 hours after your Defence Wide Area Network (DWAN) account is created, a system-generated email is sent to your DWAN account advising you to use the MyInfo site (DWAN login required) to obtain your Defence 365 username and temporary password.
• Current DND/CAF employees: a Defence 365 account has already been created for you. Go to the MyInfo site (DWAN login required) to obtain your Defence 365 username and temporary password.
• Users without DWAN access: Please call your local service desk (Accessible only on the National Defence network) to request your Defence 365 username and temporary password, or have your manager arrange service desk assistance.

No, you will not be able to use your unmanaged/personal Microsoft account or applications to access Defence 365. You require a Defence 365 account.

Defence 365 is a Microsoft Office 365 cloud platform that has been customized to meet the security and integrity requirements of DND/CAF.

Visit the Get started with Defence 365 page (Accessible only on the National Defence network) for information on initial steps, or go to www.office.com (You are now leaving the Government of Canada website) to log in to D365.

Once you receive your temporary password, setting up the account only takes a few minutes.

Note: you will need access to a phone, smart phone or tablet to use the multi-factor authentication (MFA) login, even if you are accessing from a laptop or desktop.

Defence 365 uses Microsoft MFA to defend against password compromise. This may occur if users enter their password by mistake on a malicious site, or if their computer is compromised. Learn how to set up multi-factor authentication.

For security reasons you cannot download Defence 365 files to your unmanaged/personal device. You can, however, upload files from your unmanaged/personal devices into Defence 365.

You are not permitted to connect unauthorized USB or Bluetooth devices, cell phones, tablets or external hard drives to any DND/CAF network device. This can enable dangerous malware to bypass our network-based security defenses.

D365 users with a valid business justification can now send attachments via their ECN email to external recipients(Accessible only on the National Defence network) (e.g. Hotmail, Gmail, etc.). When sending emails with attachments to external addresses, users will be prompted to provide a valid business justification for sending the attachment. The justification will be logged and audited by the D365 Security Monitoring Team.

If you have a requirement, are experiencing technical issues, please visit the D365 Support Guidance application (Accessible only on the National Defence network).

If you can’t find your answer in the D365 Support Guidance application, you can contact your local service desk (Accessible only on the National Defence network) or if you have DWAN access, you can submit a ticket through the EITSM Self-Service Portal. If you don’t have DWAN access, use the EITSM D365 Non-DWAN Service Request Form (Accessible only on the National Defence network).

Only the web app version of Teams is supported by Defence 365 on unmanaged/personal laptops and desktops. For mobile devices (smart phones and tablets) however, you must download the app to access Teams.