Privacy guidelines for using Microsoft Teams

Privacy guideline for using Microsoft Teams as a student

These guidelines help you use Microsoft Teams safely and responsibly during your studies and research activities. They aim to protect your own privacy and that of others, while supporting effective collaboration. Please pay extra attention when special categories of personal data are involved.

1. Use Teams only for its intended purpose

Teams is designed to help you collaborate effectively, but it's important to use it appropriately:

Use Teams for study and research-related activities, such as working on group projects, discussing assignments, or sharing ideas with fellow students and supervisors.
Don't use Teams to bypass other official UM communication channels (like email or Canvas), unless your lecturer or supervisor explicitly allows it.
Avoid informal or inappropriate communication unrelated to your studies. Teams is a professional platform, not a private chat tool.

2. Protect personal data

When using Teams, personal data is shared such as names in comments or your voice and image during meetings. This means you must be cautious:

What not to share: Special categories of personal data[1] without explicit prior consent. Think carefully before uploading or saying anything. At FHML, processing special categories of personal data in Teams is currently not allowed.
Alternatives: If sensitive information must be shared, consult your lecturer or supervisor about the best method. Sometimes email or secure research storage may be more appropriate.
Why it matters: Teams is a cloud-based platform, and certain data may be subject to foreign laws, which could pose privacy risks.

3. Meet safely

Teams is UM’s tool for holding online meetings. Keep these points in mind:

Find a quiet, private space. In public areas, others may overhear your conversation.
Use secure equipment: a private (not public) computer and a stable internet connection.
Don’t share screens or documents that contain sensitive information unless explicitly agreed upon.
Be aware that audio and video meetings with more than two participants are not fully end-to-end encrypted by Microsoft. While they are secured, they’re not as private as 1-on-1 calls.

4. Recording and transcribing

Recording and transcribing spoken text can be useful features in Teams—but handle with care:

Recording access: Students cannot record or transcribe in Teams by default. You can request temporary access via your lecturer or supervisor if needed for study or research purposes. They can then request permissions from your faculty’s IT department.
Always ask for consent: All participants must be informed and explicitly agree before recording begins. Also explain why you're recording. If external participants are involved, this is even more important. When you start recording in Teams, participants automatically receive a notification stating that staying in the meeting means they agree to being recorded.
Storing recordings: Recordings are saved to your OneDrive by default. If the recording is for research, move it to your research project’s designated storage location. Note: recordings are automatically deleted from OneDrive after 60 days.
Why it matters: Without consent, a valid legal basis for processing personal data, or secure storage, you risk violating privacy laws and breaching confidentiality.
Built-in Teams features:
- When recording or transcribing begins, all participants receive a notification with a link to the UM privacy policy.
- The recording is stored in the meeting organizer’s Teams environment, even if someone else started the recording. Participants receive a chat link to the file.
- All recordings have a default 60-day retention period, after which they are automatically deleted unless the owner intervenes.

5. For interviews or research

Use Teams carefully for interviews or research purposes:

Consent and planning: Always ask participants for permission in advance to process personal data, including recordings and shared content. Tell them how their data will be used.
Consult your supervisor: Discuss which data you may collect and what security measures are needed. Using Teams for research interviews may require approval from an ethics committee. Consider carefully whether Teams is the best tool for conducting your interviews.
Avoid public spaces: Don’t conduct interviews or research meetings in public places like cafés. This could compromise participants’ privacy.

For more information on privacy at UM, visit
https://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/protecting-personal-data

Version 1.0, 14 April 2025

[1] Special categories of personal data: personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership, and genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a person, or data concerning health, or data concerning a person’s sex life or sexual orientation, as referred to in Article 9 of the GDPR.

Privacy guideline for using Microsoft Teams as an employee

These guidelines help you use Microsoft Teams safely and responsibly during your work. They aim to protect your own privacy and that of others, while supporting effective collaboration. Please pay extra attention when special categories of personal data are involved.

1. Protect personal data

When using Teams, personal data is shared such as names in comments on documents, or voice and video during online meetings. This means you must act with care:

What not to share: Special categories of personal data[1] without explicit prior consent. Think carefully before uploading or saying anything. At FHML, processing special categories of personal data in Teams is currently not allowed.
Alternatives: If you know sensitive information needs to be shared, consider whether Teams is the best method. Sometimes email or secure research storage may be more appropriate.
Why this matters: Teams is a cloud-based platform. Some data may fall under foreign jurisdiction, which can pose privacy risks.

2. Meet safely

Teams is the official tool at UM for holding online meetings. Please keep the following in mind:

Make sure you’re in a quiet and private space. In a public area, others may overhear your conversation.
Check your equipment beforehand: use a secure (non-public) computer and a stable private internet connection.
Don’t share screens or documents that contain sensitive information, unless this has been explicitly agreed.
Be aware: audio or video calls in Teams with more than two participants are not fully end-to-end encrypted by Microsoft. While they are secured, they’re not as protected as one-on-one calls.

3. Recording and transcribing

Recording meetings and transcribing speech are helpful features in Teams, but they must be used responsibly:

Always ask for consent: All participants must be informed before the recording starts and must explicitly agree. Always explain why you are recording. This is especially important when external participants are involved. When a recording starts in Teams, all participants are notified and informed that staying in the meeting implies consent.
Storing recordings: Recordings are saved to your OneDrive by default. If the recording is for research purposes, move it to the designated storage location of your research project. If it’s for educational purposes, MediaSite is the appropriate platform to upload and share the video. Recordings are automatically deleted from OneDrive after 60 days.
Why this matters: Without consent, a valid legal basis for data processing, or secure storage, you risk violating privacy regulations and confidentiality.
Measures in Teams:
- When someone starts a recording or transcription, all participants are notified, including a link to the UM privacy policy.
- The recording is saved to the Teams environment of the organizer, even if someone else initiated it. Participants receive a link to the recording via the Teams chat.
- The default retention period for recordings is 60 days. After that, the file is automatically deleted unless the owner takes action.

4. Using Teams within education

Teams can be a useful addition to the digital tools available for education. However, Canvas remains the primary platform from which teachers and students work within courses. You may use Teams additionally—for example, for collaborative document editing.

5. For interviews or research

Use Teams with care when conducting interviews or research:

Consent and planning: Always obtain prior consent from participants to process personal data, including recording online conversations or sharing information. Clearly explain how their data will be used.
Consult your supervisor: Discuss which data you are allowed to collect and which security measures need to be taken. Using Teams for research may require approval from an ethics committee. Consider carefully whether Teams is the most suitable tool for your research interviews.
Avoid public settings: Do not conduct interviews or research meetings in public places such as cafés. This could compromise participant privacy.

For more information on privacy at UM, visit
https://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/protecting-personal-data

Version 1.0, 14 April 2025