Microsoft Teams Will Soon Automatically Log Your Office Hours, but Privacy Hawks Warn of a New Surveillance Era

Starting June 2026, Microsoft Teams will automatically log office entry and seating using Wi-Fi, fueling privacy concerns as 88% of managers suspect AI-driven productivity fakes.

Managers are already worried that employees might use artificial intelligence to look busy. Now Microsoft is adding a tool that tracks whether they actually are in the building.

Starting in June 2026, the collaboration platform Teams will automatically register when workers enter the office and where they sit. The feature, available for Windows and macOS, relies on the unique identifiers of Wi-Fi access points—known as BSSIDs—inside a company’s network. Microsoft 365 Places then processes that location data so colleagues and supervisors can see who is on site.

The technology is off by default. Administrators have to activate it, and individual employees can object to having their whereabouts shared. Any location entries recorded outside working hours are automatically deleted.

A climate of suspicion fuels the rollout

The timing coincides with fraying trust in the workplace. A March 2026 study by HR-tech firm G-P and Wakefield Research found that 88 percent of surveyed managers believe staff are using AI to fake productivity. Separately, 82 percent of bosses think AI has diminished the value of human work.

Microsoft itself is doubling down on artificial intelligence. At its Build developer conference earlier in June, the company unveiled an assistant called Scout, designed to autonomously handle tasks such as travel planning and expense reporting. Internal testing with more than 1,000 Microsoft employees had been running since March. But leaked documents suggest the company has also developed strategies to drive user dependency—a move that caused internal backlash.

Legal hurdles in Germany and Austria

Employee representatives and privacy advocates view the automated attendance check with alarm. Data-protection experts point to the strict requirements of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation. In Germany and Austria, introducing such tracking usually requires approval from the works council. Trade unions warn it could pave the way for comprehensive behavioral monitoring.

Unanswered questions remain about what consequences workers might face if they refuse to share their location. Microsoft recommends activating the feature to streamline hybrid collaboration, but critics see a real risk of “total surveillance.”

Competition and regulation tighten the screws

The drive toward digital workplace monitoring is also being intensified by rivalry in the tech sector. Perplexity, a Microsoft competitor, recently announced Windows support for its AI agent. Unlike Microsoft’s cloud-based assistant, Perplexity runs locally on the computer and remains model-agnostic.

At the same time, the EU AI Act is putting new pressure on companies. They must scrutinize their investments in AI and how those tools are deployed in personnel management. According to payroll provider SD Worx, nearly half of German HR decision-makers are already investing in AI solutions, placing the country around the middle of the European pack. Experts advise companies to draw up transparency policies early to stay compliant with the evolving regulatory framework.