Account Linking Experience with new Microsoft Bing and Edge AI Features

Originally posted by Microsoft Feb 8, 2023 Uncategorized 0 Comments

Microsoft just announced new generative AI experiences coming to Microsoft Bing and Edge. These will become available as a preview to individuals accessing Bing.com or using the new Discover feature in the Microsoft Edge Sidebar with their personal Microsoft Account (MSA).

Some users who sign up for access to the new Bing experience with their MSA may also have linked that MSA account to their Azure Active Directory (AAD) work account. Even under these conditions, access to these new Bing experiences is only associated with their MSA.

The new Discover feature in the Edge Sidebar also enhances user productivity by offering the ability to ask questions using chat and to compose new content, all within the user’s workflow. Access to the Discover feature is associated with the user’s personal MSA and not their AAD account. Access is also restricted to pre-release versions of Edge (e.g. Edge Dev).

How this will affect your organization:

These new experiences do not change Microsoft’s principles for data security and privacy in the enterprise. Confidential organizational information including search history will not be tied to a user’s AAD account, even after being linked with their MSA.

The ability to link an AAD and MSA account (MC466201 November ’22) is enabled by default an organization’s employees—but employees are still required to opt-in. When account linking is enabled, employees don’t need to switch between their MSA and AAD accounts on Bing to earn Microsoft Rewards, which helps with employee productivity by keeping employees signed in with their AAD account. The choice to link accounts is in an employee’s hands, and they need to take action to connect their AAD and MSA accounts.

What you need to do to prepare:

For enterprises with account linking enabled, employees with an AAD and MSA account can opt into account linking through entry points such as Microsoft Edge and Microsoft Bing.

You can choose to manage or disable the Discover experience in the Edge Sidebar via Group Policy.

Message ID: MC512607