External people can't open files with Sensitivity Label encryption.
Question: What are the best practices for ensuring external users can open files encrypted with Sensitivity Labels? Hi all. I've been investigating proper setup of sensitivity labels in Purview, and the impact on user experience. The prerequisites are simple enough, creating and configuring the labels reasonably straightforward, and publishing them is a breeze. But using them appears to be a different matter! Everything is fine for labels that don't apply encryption (control access) or when used internally. However, the problems come when labels do apply encryption and information is sent externally. The result is that we apply a label to a document, attach that document to an email, and send it externally - and the recipient says they can't open it and they get an error that their email address is not in our directory. This is because due to the encryption, the external user needs to authenticate back to our tenant, and if they're not in our tenant they obviously can't do this so the files won't open. So, back to the question above. What's the easiest / most secure / best way to add any user we might share encrypted content with to our tenant. As I see it we have the following options: Users have to request Admins add the user as a Guest in our tenant before they send the content. Let's face it, they'll not do this and/or get frustrated. Users share encrypted content directly from SharePoint / OneDrive, rather than attaching it to emails (as that would automatically add the external person as a Guest in the tenant). This will be fine in some circumstances, but won't always be appropriate (when you want to send them a point-in-time version of a doc). With good SharePoint setup, site Owners would also have to approve the share before it gets sent which could delay things. Admins add all possible domains that encrypted content might be shared with to Entra B2B Direct Connect (so the external recipient doesn't have to be our tenant). This may not be practical as you often don't know who you'll need to share with and we work with hundreds of organisations. The bigger gotcha is that the external organisation would also have to configure Entra B2B Direct Connect. Admins default Entra B2B Direct Connect to 'Allow All'. This opens up a significant attack surface and also still requires any external organisation to configure Entra B2B Direct Connect as well. I really want to make this work, but it need to be as simple as possible for the end users sharing sensitive or confidential content. And all of the above options seem to have significant down-sides. I'm really hoping someone who uses Sensitivity Labels on a day-to-day basis can provide some help or advice to share their experiences. Thanks, Oz.
Escalation Inquiry: IP Logs Request for MS Account
Hello, I am seeking advice regarding a security issue with my Microsoft account. There were unauthorized login attempts on my account between May 23 and May 25, 2025. I submitted a ticket to Microsoft Privacy / Security Incident Response (SIR) regarding IP activity logs. My ticket was created on August 7, 2025 and escalated to the IP/SIR team on August 11, 2025. Since then, I have sent multiple follow-ups, but no response has been received. I also created a new ticket on September 17, 2025, but only received the automatic acknowledgment; no agent has contacted me. I am concerned because the logs are important for verifying my account security and ensuring no unauthorized access occurred. Could anyone advise typical processing times for IP activity requests or suggest ways to escalate this issue effectively? Thank you in advance for any guidance.Chromium 141 Update Will Affect Offline Access for SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business
An update for Chromium 141 can affect the ability of SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business to access offline content, including files and lists and lead to degraded performance. The change is designed to improve user privacy, but some Microsoft 365 apps need browsers to be able to access local files, notably for OneDrive synchronization. Prepare by upgrading the OneDrive Sync client and distributing a new policy to workstations. https://office365itpros.com/2025/10/07/chromium-141-spo/
Has Your Organization Set Up a Viva Engage Community for Microsoft 365 Collaboration?
Hi everyone! As a trainer, I often get great questions during my Microsoft 365 sessions. While I share answers live, only the attendees benefit—leaving many others without that valuable info. I’ve already set up a Microsoft Learning Pathways SharePoint site as a resource, but I’m exploring ways to extend knowledge-sharing beyond the classroom.Has anyone created or participated in a Viva Engage community to share tips, answer questions, and collaborate around daily Microsoft 365 tools? I’d love to hear about your experiences, best practices, or ideas on how to maximize impact and reach across your organizations. Thanks in advance for sharing! Let’s empower everyone to get more from Microsoft 365.😃
OneDrive vs SharePoint
In the world of Microsoft 365, both OneDrive and SharePoint serve as robust platforms for file storage and collaboration. Yet, understanding which one fits your specific needs can be challenging. This blog explores their key differences, practical use cases, and offers guidance to help you make the right choice. What Is OneDrive? OneDrive for Business functions as a user-specific cloud repository within the Microsoft 365 framework, optimized for individual file storage, synchronization, and personal document management. What Is SharePoint? SharePoint Online operates as a collaborative content management and intranet platform within Microsoft 365, engineered for structured data handling, enterprise-level document sharing, and workflow automation across teams and departments.
Problems sharing files with users outside Tenant
An additional Sign In window appears for external users with whom we share files or folders through OneDrive and/or SharePoint. The window for entering the email appears (to validate that it's the intended recipient), but before entering the verification code, the Organization Sign In window appears. This sometimes requests a password, which can cause issues or even prevent users from sharing these folders with external users. Authentication flow example: Normally, step 2 is followed by step 4, but in my case, it's taking me to step 3 where I have to re-enter the email address I'd already entered in step 2. This isn't normal. In this case, there's no major problem with this email because it then asks for the verification code, and I log in without a problem. But for example, when I tried another email address, also from Gmail, it asks for a password to authenticate: Then I realized it's asking for my password because that email is associated with my GitHub account, and it's trying to authenticate with a password. However, this flow is incorrect because for authentication to SharePoint files shared with external users of the Tenant, it should only ask for the username and verification code. The fact that it asks me to enter my email twice, as in step 3 of each example, and that it occasionally asks me for a password, is incorrect in the flow, and I don't know how to change that.OneDrive not syncing
Hi, I have added a folder to my OneDrive using a browser, waited for over an hour but it still doesn't show on my PC. OneDrive on my pc says "your files are synced" which is not true. Due to the general lack of verbosity in OneDrive, there is no way to tell when it will check again or when it hat checked last. Due to the lack of ease of use in OneDrive, there is no "sync now" button I would like to stop wasting money and continue my working day, what should I do? Regards, Robert.Microsoft’s Push to Save Office Files in the Cloud
A new policy setting is available to force Microsoft 365 enterprise (Office subscription) applications to save to cloud locations and ignore the local disk. The idea is to increase cloud usage and improve compliance by storing all Office files in OneDrive for Business or SharePoint Online. Like a network PC, creating a dependency on a network connection only makes sense when a network connection is dependable, which might not always be the case. https://office365itpros.com/2025/09/09/save-to-cloud-locations/
