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Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

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Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#21

Post by rbanffy »

vtbassmatt wrote: post #17
pdonis wrote: post #11

Did Microsoft give fair warning of what was going to happen to the data in the cloud that was stored there under these licenses? (I don't have a Slate account so I can't read the full article to see if this is addressed.)

Yes. Disclosure: I work at Microsoft. But I also am the volunteer IT guy at a nonprofit, and am speaking entirely in that context. I was quite unhappy to get a mail back in (checks archives) January that our grant would be discontinued and we’d either have to make do with the web versions of things, migrate someplace, or start paying. They also reminded us several more times before the drop date. I don’t really under…

If 150,000+ organisations were caught by surprise, I would say it’s clear whatever communication they had was not adequate.

Organisations that didn’t have an off-boarding option (do nothing, pay the minimum, I’ll deal with it) selected should receive monthly reminders, then every 2 weeks (to multiple people), and one per week until a VERY alarming one the week before. And, of course, have all systems shut down and the data archived for a grace period.

I hope they sue Microsoft for what seems neglect.

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#22

Post by rbanffy »

KetoManx64 wrote: post #18
mentalfist wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nine PBS (PBS member station) lost 50tb/70 years of archives due to cloud provider ending operations abruptly

They lost data because of their incompetence and not actually having any backups.

Their cloud provider was in charge of backups.

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#23

Post by ahepp »

> On Reddit, and across Microsoft’s own Tech Community forums, more such claims abound of surprise deletion without notification.

I clicked the link with text “more such claims”, and it appears to be someone complaining about being unable to reach a human after their devices were physically stolen. Not sure how that’s related to the claims in the article.

https://www.reddit.com/r/FuckMicrosoft/comments/1ub7i1h/micr...

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#24

Post by akudha »

vtbassmatt wrote: post #17
pdonis wrote: post #11

Did Microsoft give fair warning of what was going to happen to the data in the cloud that was stored there under these licenses? (I don't have a Slate account so I can't read the full article to see if this is addressed.)

Yes. Disclosure: I work at Microsoft. But I also am the volunteer IT guy at a nonprofit, and am speaking entirely in that context. I was quite unhappy to get a mail back in (checks archives) January that our grant would be discontinued and we’d either have to make do with the web versions of things, migrate someplace, or start paying. They also reminded us several more times before the drop date. I don’t really under…

Does that mean it is 170000 * 10 * 3 = 5,100,000 per month (assuming 10 users per org)? Isn’t that less than found in the cushion level money for a trillion dollar company?

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#25

Post by KetoManx64 »

rbanffy wrote: post #22
KetoManx64 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They lost data because of their incompetence and not actually having any backups.

Their cloud provider was in charge of backups.

You can try to offload responsibility from them, but every IT and DevOps person that has an inkling of competence knows you don't store your backups in the same place as your prod data.

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#26

Post by margalabargala »

lynndotpy wrote: post #14
12_throw_away wrote: post #5

Yep, this is the sort of thing happens when you've deeply internalized that trustworthiness and continuity is not important. Microsoft today is not a serious company, it is not run by serious people, and it is at the forefront of a deeply unserious industry.

Microsoft is serious because the world is full of people with needs who do not know better and Microsoft is still the default to serve those needs. Something does not have to be useful, benign, consistent, worthwhile, or deserving to exist in order to be serious. For example: Losing an arm and an eye to a fireworks accident, being grievously assaulted in an alley, or having Microsoft arbitrarily delete all your data,…

No.

Just because an entity is able to do things with serious consequences, does not mean they are a serious entity.

For other examples, see school shooters in the US.

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#27

Post by [deleted] »

rbanffy wrote: post #21
vtbassmatt wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. Disclosure: I work at Microsoft. But I also am the volunteer IT guy at a nonprofit, and am speaking entirely in that context. I was quite unhappy to get a mail back in (checks archives) January that our grant would be discontinued and we’d either have to make do with the web versions of things, migrate someplace, or start paying. They also reminded us several more times before the drop date. I don’t really under…

If 150,000+ organisations were caught by surprise, I would say it’s clear whatever communication they had was not adequate. Organisations that didn’t have an off-boarding option (do nothing, pay the minimum, I’ll deal with it) selected should receive monthly reminders, then every 2 weeks (to multiple people), and one per week until a VERY alarming one the week before. And, of course, have all systems shut down and th…

[deleted]

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#28

Post by docjay »

NordSteve wrote: post #13
pdonis wrote: post #11

Did Microsoft give fair warning of what was going to happen to the data in the cloud that was stored there under these licenses? (I don't have a Slate account so I can't read the full article to see if this is addressed.)

The second paragraph of the email: We strongly advise transitioning your users to a different Microsoft 365 offer for nonprofits, before the subscription is cancelled, to avoid disruption and data loss. Connect now with your current Microsoft partner – or find a partner – to get started. Learn more about what happens to your data and access when your subscription ends. That last sentence links to https://learn.micros…

I wish they’d just use clear and blunt language, rather than “strongly advise” and “to avoid.” I’m reminded of my bank sending “Important account information” mail that contains advertising OR actual important information, but at like a 20:1 ratio.

“YOUR FILES WILL BE DELETED ON {DATE}” seems like it would have solved any ambiguity.

Re: Over 170k Nonprofits Lost All Their Data. Is Microsoft to Blame?

#30

Post by vkaku »

KetoManx64 wrote: post #15
vkaku wrote: post #10

People are better off using LibreOffice on a Linux desktop

As a daily Linux user and enthusiast, I detest statements like this. You did not read the article not the problem that those companies have and your only solution is "Use LibreOffice" without any actual interest in what their problem is or what an actual solution to their problems is. People like you push newbies away from Linux. Using LibreOffice does not give you web sharing, nor permission systems, nor automation…

Nope. I actually care enough to make this statement. Using such subscription products and then getting rug pulled isn't something easy for non technical users.

So just start with sovereign, better governed products with clear transparent pricing and better affordability to begin with.

Data interchange formats are more important than ever, and having programs that don't do too many things is just as important.

Not everyone starts thinking about Google Docs or WebDAV to begin with, and actually ... LibreOffice does a decent job here.

https://help.libreoffice.org/latest/en-US/text/shared/guide/...

Don't bring up imaginary problems on Linux that people don't have. Losing access to accounts on a computer or a cloud service due to skunky companies is totally happening today though.

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