Microsoft: Our product is not our software. It's you!
this post was submitted on 02 Mar 2026
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God damn it, at work they pay us to put that stuff on our personal phones... maybe I've been a bit too lenient on that, maybe I should get a work phone.
Never, ever, cross the personal/work barrier. I have seen so much abuse when those lines cross.
No worries, I use Linux for work and privately :)
To be fair, this is barely a feature. If you are on WIFI anyone that really cares knows where you are already
Exactly. I already don't use the work wifi because they don't need to know how much I use Lemmy while at work.
I worked on a large(ish) contract (tens of millions) with one of Microsoft’s engineering teams where they were implementing an Azure managed version of software we produced. I would regularly refuse to install teams at the meetings, using teams in-browser only.
It also ensured that the technical project manager had to be the one to transcribe anything in our notes into whatever tools Microsoft was using.
While it was never said, the Microsoft engineers seemed to completely understand and never pushed back against my refusal to a) install crapware and b) not take on work that wasn’t mine.
Not using teams: win win.
I would regularly refuse to install teams at the meetings, using teams in-browser only.
I tried to do this for a safety meeting, Teams is also broken in browsers. I'm not sure if intentional or incompetence.
How about intentional incompetence
The users aren't the customers. The customers are the users' bosses.
And or some random dude in procurement.
Before Teams when Evilcorp was using Skype for business the app would update our location within the building.
This is illegal in Norway :)
And Germany.
I was gonna use teams for a few groups of people, but fuck this noise. What are the best alternatives? Something like slack or discord but those have their issues too
Try Stoat, or Matrix.
There are tons of alternatives. As for how good they are I have no idea. It feels like every other day a new discord alternative is highlighted here. But as of now I don't believe there's any drop in replacement for discord/teams, but that is not to say you shouldn't seek out something that is good enough.
Teams can be worse?
You’re doubting Microsoft’s ability to make a product worse?
No, they have shown again and again, that they are capable of the impossible, if it comes to making things worse.
But still, we are talking Teams.
"Scientist invents new, even smellier, dog poo."
Just add more rotting eggs.
Oh!
Productivity boosters and surveillance go hand in hand.
There have been teams at Microsoft making everything worse since 1998. Why is this news?
"Tenant admins will decide whether to enable it and require end-users to opt-in."
If you require someone to opt-in, they're no longer "opting in"
But you clicked the terms and conditions popup, so you are our slave now.
So glad I only use Teams in a browser, fuck this bullshit.
Don't install Teams.
You can't even install it on Linux, they killed the native app years ago and now tell you to use the browser version
And then every link asks if you want to open in app, three extra clicks but worth it
Teams comes pre installed with windows these days.
I recommend KDE Plasma on any linux distribution that comes with it for people interested in recovering their digital sovereignty.
There is a difference betwen the version for corporate (MS365 Business) and the consumer version.
Yes, they have the same name.
Yes, it's confusing.
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This is what I gathered on the subject, feel free to correct if anything is wrong:
The WiFi tracking works by scanning for nearby WiFi networks, identifying which routers are nearby and their signal strengths, matching those against their database of known WiFi access points, and using that data to estimate your location.
For now the feature will be off by default, first has to be enabled by your company, and then the user has to opt in for it to be used.
For those who are required to use Microsoft products, it can by bypassed by using a wired Ethernet connection and not using Teams on any devices using a wireless connection.
I look forward to this feature being deployed in hospitals. It's going to fail so hard and generate so many tickets.
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Only one team working to make Teams worse???
They have achieved higher productivity by not using teams themselves.
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Having Teams remind you that, during session recordings, your video and what you say can be used by Microsoft for whatever purpose they want, including (but not limited to) training AI.
This wasn't the line that was crossed? Seeing/hearing your likeness in the next generated AI / copilot commercial, because you needed to consent in order to work. This is "fine" /s
... but having Microsoft know that you're answering Teams messages while on the toilet... yeah, that's where "the line gets crossed" (eyeroll)
We need to wake-up and drop this technological cancer.
edit: a word
"It's okay, because it's Microsoft" is management's response when I raise a concern at work.
Heaven forbid you use an open source tool that isn't on the software whitelist yet
"It's okay, because it's Microsoft"
"You mean the mass surveillance corporation under the control of the nazis?"
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