Microsoft Team To Get End-To-End Encryption, More Security Upgrade

Microsoft has announced the release of a host of new security features for its Teams collaboration platform, including limited End-to-End Encryption (E2EE) functionality.

The company made the announcement on Tuesday at its annual Ignite conference, where it unveiled new video conferencing meeting controls to protect against gatecrashers, as well as a disabled video function that should help to limit potential disruptions.

Meanwhile, Multi geo will allow businesses that operate in multiple territories to have greater visibility and control over the location of the data centres holding their data which Microsoft said will help them guarantee compliance with data protection regulations.

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The introduction of end-to-end encryption to the Teams platform is the most eagerly expected update. This additional protection will be available to paying users and will initially apply to one on one meetings only, although Microsoft has hinted that E2EE will be extended to other meetings type further down the line, Techradar wrote.

Some of these new additions are expected to arrive sooner than others, but all are set to land within the first half of the year.

This development enables meetings between participants to be encrypted using cryptographic keys stored only on users' devices. This will ensure absolute privacy, restricting third parties, including Microsoft from having access to the keys to decrypt private meeting data.

Some of these new additions will arrive sooner than others, but all are set to land within the first half of the year.

“In this first release, customers will have the ability to enable E2EE for 1:1 unscheduled Teams calls,” Microsoft explained. “Future updates will be made available to support customers’ evolving compliance needs, including expanding to scheduled calls and online meetings.”

According to the company, the first iteration of E2EE on Teams will provide a means of passing sensitive information between individuals in a secure manner. “For example, a call from an IT admin giving an employee her password voer Teams could be conducted with E2EE,” Microsoft proposed.