Microsoft Entra vs NewCore for AI agent security and identity
SHORT ANSWER
Editorial assessment · Desk research from public vendor material · Reviewed 2026-09-29
HOW TO READ THIS PAIR
Scores by criterion
Agents get their own identities, service principals and OAuth flows. A short-lived-by-default credential model is not stated on the overview page.
Source: Microsoft Learn: Entra Agent ID
Agent Guardian issues "scoped, short-lived credentials on demand" and states the agent never holds the provider's standing credential.
Source: NewCore: Agent Guardian
Higher score: NewCore
Conditional Access and ID Protection apply to agents. These act at sign-in and token issuance; per-tool-call checks are not described.
Source: Microsoft Learn: Entra Agent ID
Higher score: NewCore
Every agent identity has owners and sponsors, and agents can be governed with access packages.
Source: Microsoft Learn: Entra Agent ID
Calls can be routed for human approval by policy, and every action is tied to the agent, the accountable human or team, and the policy.
Source: NewCore: Agent Guardian
Higher score: NewCore
Registers agents built on Microsoft and supported third-party platforms; discovery of unregistered agents is not described on the pages reviewed.
Source: Microsoft Learn: Entra Agent ID · Microsoft Learn: agent identities for AI agents
Identity Discovery lists AI agents in the same graph as people and apps; sources named are Okta, AWS, Microsoft, BambooHR, Salesforce and Google.
Source: NewCore: Identity Discovery
Higher score: NewCore
Generally available for all Entra customers, with OAuth protocols for agents and third-party agent configuration.
Source: Microsoft Learn: agent identities for AI agents · Microsoft Learn: Entra Agent ID
Two access paths are published, an MCP gateway and an OAuth-based Enterprise Managed Authorization flow. No integration count or named agent list is published.
Source: NewCore: Agent Guardian
Higher score: Microsoft Entra
Generally available; extended security features need Microsoft Agent 365. Pricing for those features is not on the pages reviewed.
Launched in June 2026. No pricing and no named customers are published.
Source: NewCore home page · NewCore launch release (PR Newswire)
Higher score: Microsoft Entra
Weighted total
Microsoft Entra 7.0 / 10 · NewCore 7.5 / 10
Higher score: NewCore
Where each one scores higher
Microsoft Entra scores higher on
- standards and ecosystem (9 vs 6)
- maturity and buying clarity (7 vs 4)
NewCore scores higher on
- no standing credentials for agents (7 vs 9)
- per-call authorization (6 vs 9)
- human accountability and approval (7 vs 9)
- finding agents you did not register (6 vs 7)
Pricing, side by side
Microsoft Entra
Entra Agent ID is available to all Entra customers. Extended features need Microsoft Agent 365; that price is not on the pages reviewed.
Source: Microsoft Learn: agent identities for AI agents
As published on 2026-09-29.
Which should you choose?
Stay with Microsoft Entra if standards and ecosystem and no standing credentials for agents matter most. It scores 9 and 7 on them. Generally available for all Entra customers, with OAuth protocols for agents and third-party agent configuration.
Consider adding NewCore if no standing credentials for agents and per-call authorization matter most. It scores 9 and 9 on them. Agent Guardian issues "scoped, short-lived credentials on demand" and states the agent never holds the provider's standing credential.
Questions
Which scores higher overall, Microsoft Entra or NewCore?
On our weights for AI agent security and identity, NewCore scores 7.5 / 10 and Microsoft Entra 7.0 / 10. Totals are the weighted average of six criterion scores; the weights are listed on the AI agent security and identity page.
Where does Microsoft Entra score higher than NewCore?
On standards and ecosystem; and maturity and buying clarity.
Where does NewCore score higher than Microsoft Entra?
On no standing credentials for agents; per-call authorization; human accountability and approval; and finding agents you did not register.
Related
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: Entra Agent ID: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/entra/agent-id/
- Microsoft Learn: agent identities for AI agents: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/entra/agent-id/identity-professional/microsoft-entra-agent-identities-for-ai-agents
- NewCore: Agent Guardian: https://newcore.com/platform/agent-guardian
- NewCore: Identity Discovery: https://newcore.com/platform/identity-discovery
- NewCore home page: https://newcore.com/
- NewCore launch release (PR Newswire): https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/newcore-emerges-from-stealth-with-66m-to-rebuild-workforce-identity-for-the-agentic-era-302799643.html