This new Microsoft Teams update prevents strangers from approaching you in chat

Microsoft Teams chat update puts privacy first

An update coming to Microsoft Teams helps prevent unwanted chats from external users in an effort to improve security in the video conferencing suite.

The Microsoft 365 Roadmap item title reads, “Remote access chat invitation flow for managed organizations” suggesting that, for now at least, this change is likely coming only to business users.

As always, the company keeps information about future products close to its chest. However, the description gives a little detail into what we can expect: “When receiving a new one-to-one chat from an external user, Teams users will now see an invitation to accept or block the external user. This also provides the ability to block external users at any time, revoking access to presence and incoming messages.”

Block external messages with Microsoft Teams

The item added that the feature is expected to go live with general availability due sometime in August 2022, extending to desktop, mobile and web platforms.

With more and more companies turning to online collaboration tools, this move is set to make presentations with outside guests a lot slicker, allowing users to eliminate unwanted messages and maintain focus while improving privacy.

Also part of the company’s roadmap destined for an August arrival is the ability to open pop-ou content in a new window, an update that will help users of dual-monitor setups view the video call and shared documents, for example, in separate windows.

Since most video conferencing suites do not offer any form of chat blocking, Microsoft hopes that this new feature will give it the one-up it needs in terms of regulating external messages.

Source: tech radar