Experts Warn Outlook Outage Increases Phishing Risks

Email services returned for many users following an Outlook outage on Thursday, but security experts warn that vulnerabilities during the disruption require heightened caution.

The system failure was not the result of a hack, Microsoft stated Friday. Instead, the company attributed the disruption to an issue during an earlier network capacity upgrade that surfaced following a recent network change.

WSFA reported that while users may have regained access to their inboxes, risks remain elevated for phishing attempts. The capacity of inspecting a phishing website was impaired while Outlook was down, according to Pengzhou He, an assistant computer science professor at Auburn University at Montgomery.

“If you are clicking any URL, try to be more cautious because in the downtime of Outlook, the capacity of inspecting a phishing website is also impaired,” He told WSFA.

For IT service providers, the sudden loss of access created widespread operational hurdles. Shaw Technology, a Montgomery-headquartered firm providing services across North America, felt the immediate impact of the platform going dark.

Local cybersecurity expert weighs in on Microsoft Outlook outage — WCVB Channel 5 Boston

Blake Perry, Shaw Technology’s vice president of security operations, noted the heavy market reliance on the tech giant’s ecosystem when asked about enterprise adoption rates.

“It’s got to be well over 90% are using a Microsoft product in some form,” Perry told WSFA. “We don’t realize how important this technology is to us these days until it stops working. And then we have to understand what other options there are to get our work done.”

The exact scale of the disruption remains unclear. However, the company stated earlier this year that it had more than 450 million paid Microsoft 365 commercial subscriptions.

In response to the downtime, industry specialists are urging enterprises to establish reliable secondary communication channels. These contingency frameworks aim to keep operations moving if primary software infrastructure fails.

He recommended that organizations managing time-sensitive operations develop formal backup strategies. Perry echoed that sentiment, emphasizing the need for accessible contact directories.

Cybersecurity expert explains issues behind Microsoft outage — WCVB Channel 5 Boston

“You should have a really clear plan about how to communicate with your employees most effectively, your key vendors, your key clients, how can we communicate with them, not through email. How do I call them? What’s everyone’s good and proper phone number?” Perry told WSFA. Pengzhou He