Microsoft Exchange adds a new anti-phishing feature inspired by Google

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By Mark Anthony Ramirez
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New anti-phishing feature added to Microsoft Exchange

Microsoft Exchange phishing update
(Image credit: Microsoft)

Recently Google implemented new security features to Gmail to address phishing threats, and now Microsoft is following suit with a planned update to Exchange. Via Microsoft's 365 Roadmap, the company stated that they were in the process of developing a PowerShell cmdlet that will allow admins to enable protections against spam and phishing threats that may show up in your inbox from suspicious senders. 

In the foreseeable future, users of Microsoft's email services will notice a new tag on emails titled "external" in their message lists in Outlook on the web, Outlook for Mac, and iOS and Android. Some Outlook mail clients may also offer a "mail tip" at the top of an incoming email along with the sender's email address. 

You may be a little familiar with this because a recent update to Microsoft Outlook's mobile app added an extern label at the top of emails in your inbox. When you select the label, it will reveal a sender's email info allowing the users to decide if it is from a trusted source or not and safe to open any attachments included in the email. 

Most emails we receive are mostly from people who tend to be harmless but, in today's world, cybercriminals are working overtime to get malware onto your system and steal your information or even your identity. So we must diligently vet those emails we're not too sure of. Users must be wary of links and attachments from emails that feign an urgent matter that must be handled immediately, like those emails from mysterious bank executives who inform you that your unknown fabulously wealthy uncle died in a blaze of glory saving the rainforest and you're his only heir. 

That all said, Microsoft wishes we would all take the matter more seriously and be ever on the lookout. The new phishing update is still only in development and should be coming later this month, according to 365 Roadmap. Till then, remember you don't have an adventurous uncle trying to save the world. Like my uncle, your uncle is probably enjoying a quiet retirement in Florida and sipping cocktails with little umbrellas in them. 

Mark Anthony Ramirez
Mark Anthony Ramirez

Mark has spent 20 years headlining comedy shows around the country and made appearances on ABC, MTV, Comedy Central, Howard Stern, Food Network, and Sirius XM Radio. He has written about every topic imaginable, from dating, family, politics, social issues, and tech. He wrote his first tech articles for the now-defunct Dads On Tech 10 years ago, and his passion for combining humor and tech has grown under the tutelage of the Laptop Mag team. His penchant for tearing things down and rebuilding them did not make Mark popular at home, however, when he got his hands on the legendary Commodore 64, his passion for all things tech deepened. These days, when he is not filming, editing footage, tinkering with cameras and laptops, or on stage, he can be found at his desk snacking, writing about everything tech, new jokes, or scripts he dreams of filming.