Inside the high-tech, high-stakes race to keep the cloud secure

- Allison Linn
A neon sign in the shape of a cloud

At any point in time on any day of the week, Microsoft’s cloud computing operations are under attack: The company detects a whopping 1.5 million attempts a day to compromise its systems. Microsoft isn’t just fending off those attacks. It’s also learning from them. All those foiled attacks, along with data about the hundreds of billions of emails and other pieces of information that flow to and from Microsoft’s cloud … Read more »

New devices at Computex 2017, a 12-year-old CEO and bee ambassador, and how two entrepreneurs made wallpaper cool again — Weekend Reading: June 2 edition

- Deborah Bach

Despite the short week after Memorial Day, there was no shortage of inspiring news around Microsoft. We checked out new Windows 10 devices unveiled at Computex 2017 and learned about Microsoft facial recognition technology that’s helping to find missing children in China. We talked with two entrepreneurs who are reinventing wallpaper and learned how a nonprofit organization is using Microsoft’s Power BI service to bring aid to people in developing countries. … Read more »

Motor City style meets Microsoft tech at Detroit Wallpaper Company

- Deborah Bach

“Wallpaper, huh?” That’s the question many people asked Andi Kubacki and Josh Young at their first design trade show, in the spring of 2013. The reaction was understandable. Maligned for its frumpy patterns and agonizing adhesives, wallpaper was long relegated to the décor dustbin. But a new generation is discovering wallpaper, and Kubacki and Young are at the vanguard of its revival. The Detroit Wallpaper Company, which they co-founded, specializes … Read more »

Introducing Windows 10 China Government Edition, the new Surface Pro and livestreaming platform Mixer — Weekend Reading: May 26 edition

- Athima Chansanchai

A major Microsoft event in Shanghai on Tuesday revealed the results of a joint venture between CETC and Microsoft: the development of Windows 10 China Government Edition, which Lenovo will be one of the first OEM partners to preinstall for China government customers. The new Surface Pro and the new Surface Pen also made their debuts at the event. Microsoft also announced improved inking capabilities in Office apps that will … Read more »

Meet Mixer, formerly Beam, Microsoft’s interactive livestreaming platform

- Microsoft Corporate Blogs
Screenshot of Mixer for interactive livestreaming

A big evolution of Microsoft’s interactive livestreaming platform was announced Thursday, including a new name for the service: Mixer (formerly Beam). Users will also see several features they’ve been asking for that unlock a whole new world of possibilities for social streaming, and help viewers find the content they’re looking for across the service. “We chose Mixer as our new name because it represents what we love most about the … Read more »

Accelerate your GDPR compliance with the Microsoft Cloud

- Julia White - Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Azure & Security
Info graphic on GDPR

The European Union’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) takes effect one year from tomorrow. While some companies have started working towards GDPR compliance, Gartner believes that less than 50 percent of all organizations will fully comply with the GDPR when it goes into effect on May 25, 2018.* We know that the cloud can help dramatically increase that compliance rate, and we are dedicated to helping our customers on … Read more »

Announcing Windows 10 China Government Edition and the new Surface Pro

- Microsoft Corporate Blogs

In Shanghai on Tuesday we announced that with strong support of CETC and Microsoft, CMIT, our joint venture has now developed Windows 10 China Government Edition for China government customers and Lenovo will be one of the first OEM partners to preinstall Windows 10 China Government Edition; introduced the most versatile laptop — the new Surface Pro — with up to 13.5 hours of battery life; revealed the new Surface … Read more »

Microsoft earns award for its sustained support of Reservist and National Guard members

- Chris Cortez - Vice President, Military Affairs
Photo of Cortez and Hood seated at a table, appearing to be listening intently in a discussion

Yesterday, Microsoft received the 2016 Extraordinary Employer Support Award from the U.S. Department of Defense in recognition of its sustained support of National Guard and Reserve military members. It was an honor to attend an on-campus ceremony where Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood accepted the award on behalf of the company. Amy’s presence is testament to the fact that Microsoft’s support of the military extends up and down our chain … Read more »

Celebrating advances in accessibility, partnering with UN Human Rights Office and making power grids autonomous – Weekend Reading: May 19 edition

- Thomas Kohnstamm

Welcome back for another edition of Weekend Reading. There is always a fair amount of news pouring out of Microsoft. This week, we’ve upped the game with a number of high-level stories that touch on big issues of our time, including accessibility, human rights, teaching technology in underserved schools, modernizing electrical grids and battling online scammers. Join us and get up to speed with what’s happening in the Microsoft universe. … Read more »

Microsoft to deliver Microsoft Cloud from datacenters in Africa

- Scott Guthrie - Executive Vice President, Cloud and Enterprise Group, Microsoft
Split photo of shoreline in Capetown and city skyline in Johannesburg

Few places in the world are as dynamic and diverse as Africa today. In this landscape, we see enormous opportunity for the cloud to accelerate innovation, support people across the continent who are working to transform their businesses, explore new entrepreneurship opportunities and help solve some of the world’s hardest problems. For these reasons, I’m very excited to share our plans to deliver the Microsoft Cloud from datacenters in Africa. … Read more »

The need for urgent collective action to keep people safe online: Lessons from last week’s cyberattack

- Microsoft Corporate Blogs

Early Friday morning the world experienced the year’s latest cyberattack. Starting first in the United Kingdom and Spain, the malicious “WannaCrypt” software quickly spread globally, blocking customers from their data unless they paid a ransom using Bitcoin. The WannaCrypt exploits used in the attack were drawn from the exploits stolen from the National Security Agency, or NSA, in the United States. That theft was publicly reported earlier this year. A … Read more »