Updates to Microsoft Teams at KU

To advance security and collaboration, KU IT is rolling out a series of updates to the Microsoft Teams platform. These changes will help protect university data, secure meetings and prevent unwanted contact from external accounts. Read on to learn about how these changes may impact your Teams experience.

Changes to Third-Party and Custom Apps in Teams

KU IT is introducing a new process for non-Microsoft apps in Teams to help keep our data secure. While it’s convenient to have access to a wide range of apps, some third-party apps have access to sensitive university data, and we need to ensure they are safe to use.

All non-Microsoft Teams applications—free or paid—now require pre-approval through the TDX Technology Procurement Request process.

For most apps, once they are approved for the first person who requests them, they will be available campus-wide without requiring additional approvals. However, higher-risk apps will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Custom-built apps will follow the same process. If you attempt to install an unapproved app, a pop-up will provide a link to the request form. If you need help completing the TDX form, please reach out to your technical support team or send an email to itcsc@ku.edu for assistance.

Update to Teams Meeting Admissions

KU IT is updating how participants are admitted to Teams meetings to improve security and streamline the meeting experience. Currently, all participants are admitted automatically by default. Moving forward, only KU participants will be admitted automatically, while non-KU participants, individuals joining without signing in and those dialing in by phone will be placed in the meeting lobby. The meeting organizer or an approved participant will need to manually admit them.

This change reduces the risk of uninvited participants joining meetings while still allowing flexibility for hosts to admit external guests as needed. If different access settings are required for a meeting, such as a panel interview where automatic admission of KU participants is not preferred, meeting organizers can adjust these settings in the meeting options.

Mac users should note that admission settings can only be modified through the Teams meeting settings and not within the Outlook app. More details on managing lobby settings can be found in this guide.

Stronger Protections Against Unsolicited Teams Messages

To reduce unwanted messages and potential scams, KU IT is strengthening controls on who can initiate contact in Teams. Moving forward, individuals using personal email accounts or other unmanaged Teams accounts will no longer be able to initiate contact with KU Teams users directly. Similarly, messages can no longer be sent from KU accounts to these unmanaged Teams accounts. However, communication with key institutional partners, including KU Medical Center, academic institutions, vendors and affiliated organizations with managed accounts, will continue uninterrupted.

If you need to collaborate with someone outside of KU who does not have a managed account, you can still invite them to a KU team as a guest. This update only restricts direct messaging from unmanaged accounts, not invitations for collaboration. For step-by-step instructions, see how to invite external guests.

Thank you for your cooperation in our joint effort to make Teams a more secure and efficient platform for communication and collaboration across KU. If you have any questions about these changes, please reach out to your technical support team or send an email to itcsc@ku.edu.