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TechQuiet 77d · day 80

170,000 nonprofits lose all data after Microsoft retires free software grant

Microsoft deleted files from nonprofit accounts without adequate warning when it wound down a popular licensing program.

newest coverage 77d agosummary written 76d ago5 pieces360 likes & upvotes11 comments Mastodon

What to know

  • Microsoft deleted data from approximately 171,000 nonprofit accounts after retiring a free software grant program, with affected organizations receiving insufficient advance warning.
  • Nonprofits that had renewed their licenses and received confirmation of continued access lost all their files permanently, with Microsoft support initially suggesting data could be recovered before reversing that statement.
  • The incident highlights risks of cloud dependency for resource-strapped organizations and has sparked discussion about digital sovereignty and the need for data backups independent of vendor platforms.

The dispute Whether the fault lies primarily with Microsoft for inadequate notification and data handling, or with nonprofits for failing to maintain independent backups of critical data. · positions read across 5 posts and comments

most voices

Microsoft is primarily responsible for inadequate communication and should be held accountable for the data loss.

  • “If you trust your data to a company like Microsoft, you are gambling with your future, as a slew of nonprofits discovered to their horror.”

    dangillmor@mastodon.social · Mastodon
some voices

Organizations should have maintained independent backups and not relied solely on vendor-provided cloud storage.

  • “Always make your own backups... Don't trust Big Tech”

    kim_harding@mastodon.scot · Mastodon
some voices

This incident demonstrates the systemic problem of digital sovereignty and vendor lock-in affecting vulnerable organizations.

  • “170,000+ nonprofits just found out the hard way about digital sovereignty: handing all your documents over to a "free" cloud software means they can vanish overnight when a vendor decides to change its mind.”

    CollaboraOffice@mastodon.social · Mastodon

“170,000+ nonprofits just found out the hard way about digital sovereignty: handing all your documents over to a "free" cloud software means they can vanish overnight when a vendor decides to change its mind.”

CollaboraOffice@mastodon.social, Software company social account · Mastodon

Ronald Khosla Canopy co-founder and head of ITMicrosoft Software companyNitish Pahwa Slate technology writer

170,000 nonprofits lose all data after Microsoft retires free software grant
slate.com

The record 1 articles and posts · last 30 days

  1. "He immediately called the tech company’s support staff, who said Canopy could retrieve its files. Later, they called… post · Mastodon · lilithsaintcrow@raggedfeathers.com · 77d ago

What people are saying 4 voices from 1 site · best of 5 · verbatim