CoreView rolls out Microsoft 365 controls across HALO

CoreView has deployed its Microsoft 365 governance and security platform across The HALO Trust's operations, covering the humanitarian organisation's programmes in 36 countries and territories, including Ukraine.

The project was implemented with support from Cyber Vigilance, a Microsoft partner, as HALO sought tighter control over a large, fast-changing user base. HALO employs more than 8,000 staff, including many temporary and locally based workers in difficult operating environments.

For the charity's central IT function, the deployment addresses a practical problem. Frequent staff movement across country programmes had made manual user lifecycle management burdensome, increasing administrators' workloads and raising the risk that accounts could remain active longer than necessary.

CoreView's software was used to automate the creation, updating and removal of user accounts within HALO's Microsoft 365 environment. This was intended to reduce manual intervention and lower the risk of dormant or over-permissioned accounts remaining in place.

HALO also wanted local teams to manage some tasks directly without weakening central oversight. The system allows the organisation to delegate defined administrative rights to in-country teams while retaining central visibility and audit control.

This was particularly relevant in operations where speed and local responsiveness are critical, including active conflict zones. HALO's work in Ukraine was brought onto the platform shortly after the initial deployment.

Alongside security and governance, HALO was looking for closer oversight of Microsoft 365 licence usage across its estate. Limited visibility into how licences were allocated and used had created a risk of unnecessary spending through overprovisioning.

CoreView's reporting tools gave HALO a clearer picture of licence utilisation, helping the organisation identify and remove waste. For a globally dispersed non-governmental organisation with thousands of workers and shifting staffing levels, software licence management can directly affect costs as well as operational control.

Rapid rollout

Cyber Vigilance worked with HALO from commercial scoping through deployment and training. According to the companies, the platform was operational within weeks of the project starting.

That speed appears to have been important for HALO, given the scale of its international footprint and the need to support teams working in unstable conditions. The charity clears landmines, cluster munitions, small arms stockpiles and improvised explosive devices, often in regions where communications, staffing continuity and administrative processes are under strain.

Dan Dickinson, Global Director of Information Systems at The HALO Trust, described the system as part of the organisation's broader technology plans.

"The expansion of our underlying Microsoft licensed estate is a core component of HALO's technology strategy. Deploying CoreView technology has allowed us to delegate responsibility, whilst maintaining full control and improving visibility," Dickinson said.

"We had CoreView operational within weeks and deployed into our Ukrainian operations soon after, adding real value in very challenging conditions," he added.

Operational pressures

The HALO Trust's requirements reflect a wider issue facing international charities and aid organisations that rely on cloud software but operate through decentralised field teams. They often need to balance local autonomy with tightly managed access to systems holding sensitive operational and personnel data.

For HALO, the challenge was heightened by high staff turnover in some programmes and the use of temporary workers whose access needs can change quickly. In that setting, delays in de-provisioning accounts can create security gaps, while overly restrictive controls can slow work on the ground.

Andrea Sivieri, Chief Product and Technology Officer at CoreView, said the project showed how governance could be maintained in difficult settings.

"The HALO Trust operates in environments where most enterprise IT assumptions simply do not hold - high staff turnover, remote in-country teams, active conflict zones," Sivieri said.

"This deployment demonstrates that with the right operational layer in place, organisations can maintain genuine central control without sacrificing the local autonomy that field operations depend on," he added.

Cyber Vigilance framed its role around implementation and support for a complex international environment, working alongside HALO's technical teams through deployment and training.

Toby Butler, CRO at Cyber Vigilance, said: "CoreView's platform provides the governance, resilience and insight to secure Halo Trust's business critical Microsoft 365 environment at scale. We're proud to have worked together to help the Halo Trust secure its systems to enable vital humanitarian work around the world."