Microsoft Teams will now also look at the context of a conversation to warn users faster about possible phishing.
Microsoft is giving Teams extra weapons against phishing. Like any digital communication platform, the collaboration platform is a popular channel for phishing attempts. Cybercriminals who pose as the IT team and get unsuspecting users to log in somewhere are an example of how Teams can be abused. Microsoft wants to help prevent that with AI.
Smarter phishing detection
Via the Microsoft 365 admin forum, it is announcing AI-driven phishing detection for Teams. According to Microsoft, this should go beyond traditional phishing detection, which mainly looks at links and attachments. The context of a conversation can sometimes say more. If your boss asks you to change the password of your Microsoft account, that will seem less suspicious than when an external user asks the same thing with no prior history.
The new feature will be rolled out automatically and will first be activated for chats with people outside your organisation. Microsoft promises that it will not store conversation history or use it for purposes other than combating phishing.
Securing with and against AI
Microsoft is thus further tightening the security of Teams. Often with AI, but sometimes against AI. The latest feature it announced gives IT administrators the option to automatically block external bots from meetings. After all, you can never be sure whether the bot your conversation partner wants to bring along can really be trusted.