'Where are you?' to Wi‑Fi tracking: Teams update sparks privacy concerns. Microsoft responds

Microsoft has firmly rejected suggestions that Teams is being positioned as a monitoring tool. (Image credit: Unsplash)

Microsoft has rolled out a new Microsoft Teams feature that can automatically detect where employees are working inside an office — down to the specific building or room — using Wi‑Fi signals, drawing criticism from privacy and workplace surveillance experts.

The feature, called “Automatic update of work location,” updates a user’s location in Teams when their device connects to an organisation’s Wi‑Fi network, potentially revealing whether they are in the office, and in some cases, exactly where within the building they are sitting.

How the feature works

According to Fortune, when a Teams user connects to their company’s Wi‑Fi network, the app can automatically update their work location for colleagues to see. If the organisation’s wireless infrastructure allows for granular tracking, Teams can identify not just the office, but the specific room or area where the user is working.

In cases where the Wi‑Fi setup is less detailed, the feature at least indicates whether an employee is working remotely or from the office.

‘A solution in search of a problem’

Critics argue the update crosses into unnecessary workplace surveillance.

“This is a solution in search of a problem when we already have existing solutions,” Jessica Vitak, a professor at the University of Maryland, told Fortune. “Do these companies ever put these ideas through a creepy assessment?”

The feature arrives as many companies intensify return‑to‑office mandates, leading employees to question whether location tracking could be used to monitor their compliance rather than collaboration.

Microsoft responds to surveillance concerns

Microsoft has firmly rejected suggestions that Teams is being positioned as a monitoring tool.

“This feature is opt‑in and intended to help employees coordinate in‑person work more smoothly with their teams,” a spokesperson told Fortune. “It is not a monitoring tool, and we do not support employee surveillance in any way.”

The company added that employee privacy is central to how Teams features are developed and deployed, and that users remain in control of whether their location is shared.