Azure Governance: Cost Management & Security Recommendations Lab

As part of my hands-on Azure cloud security portfolio, this lab demonstrates the intersection of cost governance and security using Azure Cost Management and Microsoft Defender for Cloud.
I analyzed spend, identified security recommendations and remediated gaps—showcasing cloud efficiency and proactive risk management.

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Table of Contents

• Overview
• Real-World Risk
• What I Built
• Diagram
• Objectives
• Steps Performed
  • [1. Resource Group Setup]
  • [2. Cost Management Analysis]
  • [3. Security Recommendations Review]
  • [4. Remediation: Defender CSPM]
  • [5. Cleanup]
• Screenshots
• Lessons Learned
• Notes and Considerations
• References
• Contact

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Overview

This lab demonstrates the ability to analyze Azure spend and continuously improve cloud security using Microsoft Defender for Cloud. I created demo resources, analyzed cost drivers and remediated security posture recommendations to show how technical and financial operations go hand-in-hand in the cloud.

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Real-World Risk

• Unmonitored cloud resources can drive up costs and introduce security vulnerabilities.
• Security teams must balance operational security and cost-effectiveness to support business goals.
• Continuous monitoring and remediation reduce both unnecessary spend and cyber risk.

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What I Built

• Deployed a resource group, virtual machine and storage account to simulate a real cloud environment.
• Used Azure Cost Management to analyze cloud spend and identify resource cost drivers.
• Investigated Microsoft Defender for Cloud recommendations and prioritized remediation.
• Enabled Defender CSPM to strengthen posture management.
• Cleaned up resources to demonstrate cost responsibility.

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Diagram

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Objectives

• Demonstrate end-to-end Azure cost analysis and security improvement.
• Show ability to remediate actionable recommendations in Microsoft Defender for Cloud.
• Prove responsible cloud use by cleaning up resources post-lab.

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Steps Performed

1. Resource Group Setup

• Created resource group rg-lab11-portfolio to host all lab resources.
• Confirmed creation and readiness before deploying services (Screenshot: resource-group.png)

2. Resource Deployment

• Deployed a Virtual Machine (vm-lab11-demo) with public IP to simulate typical cloud spend and security signals.
• Created a Storage Account (stlab11demo) for demonstrating storage cost and security.
• Documented resource overviews for both deployments (Screenshots: vm-overview.png & storage-overview.png)

3. Cost Management Analysis

• Navigated to Cost Management > Cost Analysis in Azure Portal.
• Filtered costs by resource group to analyze lab spend and cost drivers.
• Captured dashboard for documentation (Screenshot: cost-dashboard-initial.png)

4. Security Recommendations Review

• Opened Defender for Cloud > Recommendations to review current security posture.
• Identified actionable recommendations, prioritizing “Microsoft Defender CSPM should be enabled.” (Screenshot: defender-recommendations-initial.png)
• Documented recommendation state before remediation (Screenshot: defender-cspm-before.png)

5. Remediation: Enable Defender CSPM

• Enabled Microsoft Defender Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) via Environment Settings in Defender for Cloud.
• Verified the plan is active and monitored coverage status.
• Documented proof of remediation (Screenshot: defender-cspm-enabled.png)

6. Cleanup

• Deleted resource group rg-lab11-portfolio to remove all lab resources and avoid unnecessary cloud spend.
• Confirmed deletion to demonstrate responsible cloud usage.

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Screenshots

All screenshots are included in the screenshots/ folder.

Step	Filename	Description
1	resource-group.png	Resource group overview after creation
2	vm-overview.png	Virtual machine overview after deployment
2	storage-overview.png	Storage account overview after deployment
3	cost-dashboard-initial.png	Cost Management dashboard, filtered by RG
4	defender-recommendations-initial.png	Initial Defender for Cloud recommendations
4	defender-cspm-before.png	CSPM recommendation before remediation
5	defender-cspm-enabled.png	CSPM enabled—remediation complete

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Lessons Learned

• Cost management and security posture improvement go hand-in-hand in Azure.
• Proactive remediation of recommendations leads to stronger, more cost-efficient environments.
• Cleaning up lab resources is a critical step for responsible cloud use.

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Notes and Considerations

• Defender for Cloud recommendations may take time to update after remediation.
• Costs are redacted in screenshots for privacy; process and governance ability are demonstrated.
• This lab can be repeated regularly for ongoing improvement.

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References

• Azure Cost Management
• Microsoft Defender for Cloud
• Azure Resource Cleanup

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Contact

Sebastian Silva C. – July, 2025 – Berlin, Germany.
LinkedIn | GitHub | sebastian@playbookvisualarts.com