Updated June 29, 2022: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.
Updated May 03, 2022: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.
Updated March 25, 2022: Microsoft have updated the rollout timeline below and provided additional details for clarity. Thank you for your patience.
Coming to public preview, default labeling policies can now be applied to any supported document that a user edits, not just a new document. This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 88515.
Users with default labeling policies will now support applying that default to any supported document they edit. Previously this only applied to new documents.
When this will happen
This is now available in Current Channel: Preview. GA rollout to begin in late March (previously mid-January) and expect it to be complete by early July (previously late May) for Web.
Rollout for PC/Mac has been postponed and we will communicate via Message center when we are ready to proceed.
How this will affect your organization
If you’ve configured users for a default sensitivity label policy for Office documents, the label you chose will automatically be applied to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents you create or modify. Previously, this only applied to new documents only.
Note: This update applies to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint on the Web, and Word and PowerPoint on PC and Mac only. Support for Excel on PC and Mac platforms will be announced via Message Center as it becomes available.
Users can always select a different label to better match the sensitivity of their document. Note: the default label policy always takes priority over mandatory labeling.
Once this change is rolled out, it’ll start to take effect for users who are configured for a default sensitivity label the next time they edit an existing unlabeled document.
What you need to do to prepare
No action required but you may want to adjust your documentation as needed.
- Learn more about specifying a default sensitivity label.
- Learn more about requiring users to apply a label.
- Learn about sensitivity labels
Message ID: MC305436
Published: 15 December 2021
Updated: 29 June 2021
