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Episodes
Regular Microsoft Cloud information featuring Azure and Office365 with Microsoft MVP Robert Crane - A mix of current Microsoft cloud news, analysis and industry expert chat.
Episodes
Sunday May 24, 2026
Sunday May 24, 2026
In this episode, we dig into Cowork Skills and why they represent a genuine shift from “AI as a novelty” to “AI as part of how work actually gets done.” Not more prompts. Not more tools. But fewer decisions, less friction, and more consistency across the business.
If you’ve ever thought “Copilot is interesting, but it’s not really embedded yet”, this episode is for you.
Resources
CIAOPS MSP Skills
Choose how OneNote opens Microsoft 365 file links
How Storm-2949 turned a compromised identity into a cloud-wide breach
Exposing Fox Tempest: A malware-signing service operation
A faster, more efficient Editor experience with Narrator in Word
Sunday May 10, 2026
Sunday May 10, 2026
A weekly roundup of Microsoft Cloud news with a focus on SMBs. Key topics include Microsoft's internal testing of an always-on AI assistant, major security threats such as Russian state-sponsored router hijacking and advanced phishing attacks, updates to Microsoft Teams, and a retrospective on SharePoint's evolution. Robert also discusses the challenges and strategies for adopting AI in business, emphasizing the need for a unified, collaborative approach to AI usage within organizations.
Resources
Microsoft tests 'ClawPilot' AI agent for 3,000 staff
SOHO router compromise leads to DNS hijacking and adversary-in-the-middle attacks
What’s New in Microsoft Teams | April 2026
ClickFix campaign uses fake macOS utilities lures to deliver infostealers
The Future of SharePoint
Breaking the code: Multi-stage ‘code of conduct’ phishing campaign leads to AiTM token compromise
Saturday Apr 25, 2026
Saturday Apr 25, 2026
I reflect on the significance of the day before diving into the week’s major developments, including the arrival of the Microsoft AI Tour in Sydney. The episode covers both partner and public events, with a focus on enterprise-level AI advancements and networking opportunities.
The podcast features a comprehensive weekly news roundup:
- The general availability of Copilot Agent capabilities in Microsoft 365 apps.
- New data security tools for AI in Microsoft Purview.
- Innovations in identity resilience and backup with Microsoft Entra.
- Microsoft’s $25 billion investment in Australian AI infrastructure and training.
- Practical security playbooks for tenant protection and device analytics.
- Updates on decluttering promotional mail with Microsoft Defender.
- Guidance on preventing oversharing in Copilot, deploying Defender, and enforcing data security with Purview.
I also share my workflow for automating podcast production using Copilot Cowork, including narration scripts and link management. I discuss experimenting with AI-driven voice narration and invites listener feedback on pacing and voice options.
The episode concludes with reflections on the Microsoft AI Tour’s enterprise focus, the importance of networking, and the challenges SMBs face in accessing relevant content. Listeners are encouraged to reach out with questions or feedback and to stay tuned for upcoming events like Microsoft Build and Ignite.
Resources
Microsoft 365 Insider Round-Up — April 2026
Declutter and Defend: Reducing Promotional Mail Noise with Microsoft Defender
Prevent Oversharing in Microsoft 365 Copilot
Microsoft Defender Deployment Tool
From Oversharing to Enforcement: A Practical Guide to AI Data Security with Microsoft Purview
Investing in Australia's AI Future
Copilot's Agentic Capabilities in Word, Excel and PowerPoint Are Generally Available
Predictive Shielding: Just-in-Time Tamper Protection
Threat Hunting Agent in Advanced Hunting
Bringing Transparency to AI-Generated Content with Watermarks in Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 Copilot Readiness and Resiliency with SharePoint and Microsoft 365 Backup
Introducing the Microsoft Sentinel Training Lab
A Practical Look at Device Analytics and Risk Signals with Microsoft Intune
Innovations in OneDrive for Collaboration, Intelligence and Control
Strengthening Identity Resilience: A Deep Dive Into Microsoft Entra Backup and Recovery
Detection Strategies for Cloud Identities Against Infiltrating IT Workers (Jasper Sleet)
Safeguarding Sensitive Data in Microsoft 365 Copilot Interactions: DLP for Microsoft 365 Copilot
Detecting Plain-Text Password Exposure Using Custom Regex in Microsoft Purview
Cross-Tenant Helpdesk Impersonation to Data Exfiltration: A Human-Operated Intrusion Playbook
Wednesday Apr 08, 2026
Wednesday Apr 08, 2026
In this episode of the CIAOPS Need to Know podcast, we take an AI‑first look at what’s happening across the Microsoft Cloud and what it really means for small and medium businesses. Episode 362 cuts through the noise to focus on the practical, real‑world impact of artificial intelligence as Microsoft continues to embed AI across Microsoft 365, Azure, and everyday productivity tools.
We discuss how an AI‑first mindset is changing the way SMBs should think about security, productivity, and operational efficiency, along with what partners and IT professionals need to pay attention to right now. Expect clear explanations, informed opinions, and actionable insights designed to help you make sense of rapid change without the hype.
Resources
- What’s new in Microsoft 365 Copilot – March 2026
- Copilot Cowork now available in Frontier
- Defending the AI era: New Microsoft capabilities to protect AI
- Threat actor abuse of AI accelerates from tool to cyberattack surface
- What’s new in Microsoft Intune – March 2026
- What’s new in Power Platform – March 2026 feature update
- File‑level archiving comes to Microsoft 365 Archive (Public Preview)
- Microsoft SharePoint turns 25
- Celebrating 30 years of Microsoft Exchange
Wednesday Feb 18, 2026
Wednesday Feb 18, 2026
Resources
- CIAOPS Need to Know Podcast: https://ciaops.podbean.com/
- CIAOPS Blog: https://blog.ciaops.com/
- CIAOPS Labs: https://blog.ciaopslabs.com/
- CIAOPS Brief: https://blog.ciaops.com/tag/cia-brief/
- Join the Teams Shared Channel: https://blog.ciaops.com/2022/07/29/join-my-teams-shared-channel/
- CIAOPS Merch Store: https://my-store-c5d877-2.creator-spring.com/
- CIAOPS Publications: https://directorcia.gumroad.com
- Become a Patron: https://www.ciaopspatron.com/
- Direct Support: https://ko-fi.com/ciaops
- Get Your M365 Questions Answered: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/06/11/get-your-m365-questions-answered-via-email-2/
- Test Your Microsoft 365 Speed: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/07/21/test-your-microsoft-365-speed-in-seconds-for-free/
- CIAOPS Email list - https://bit.ly/cia-email
- Achieving SMB1001 publication - https://directorcia.gumroad.com/l/smb10012006
Show Notes
Email philme@catalyst345.com to receive the invitation to Phil’s online meetings
-
Introducing Security Dashboard for AI (Public Preview)
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft-security-blog/introducing-security-dashboard-for-ai-now-in-public-preview/4494637 -
Your Data, Your Choices: Microsoft’s Privacy Commitments
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365insiderblog/your-data-your-choices-understanding-microsoft%E2%80%99s-privacy-commitments/4489814 -
Manipulating AI Memory for Profit: AI Recommendation Poisoning
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2026/02/10/ai-recommendation-poisoning/ -
What’s New in Microsoft Sentinel – February 2026
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftsentinelblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-sentinel-february-2026/4494218 -
Closing Attack Paths with Identity Intelligence
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftthreatprotectionblog/from-signal-to-strategy-closing-attack-paths-with-identity-intelligence/4491856 ] -
Exchange Online EWS – End of Life Reminder
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/exchange/exchange-online-ews-your-time-is-almost-up/4492361 -
What’s New in Microsoft Intune — January 2026
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoftintuneblog/whats-new-in-microsoft-intune-%E2%80%93-january-2026/4476487 -
Real‑time Defense: Securing AI Agents
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2026/01/23/runtime-risk-realtime-defense-securing-ai-agents/ -
Detecting Backdoored Language Models at Scale
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2026/02/04/detecting-backdoored-language-models-at-scale/
Thursday Feb 05, 2026
Thursday Feb 05, 2026
In this episode I'm joined by Shervin Shaffie from Microsoft to do a deep dive into Copilot Studio. That's the service from Microsoft that allows you to create agents in a 'low-code' manner right inside the M365 environment. Shervin has some great Youtube content I highly recommend and provides some great insights and tips and tricks in this episode when working with agents in Microsoft 365. I'll also brin you up to date with the latest Microsoft Cloud news. Listen along.
Resources
- CIAOPS Need to Know Podcast: https://ciaops.podbean.com/
- CIAOPS Blog: https://blog.ciaops.com/
- CIAOPS Labs: https://blog.ciaopslabs.com/
- CIAOPS Brief: https://blog.ciaops.com/tag/cia-brief/
- Join the Teams Shared Channel: https://blog.ciaops.com/2022/07/29/join-my-teams-shared-channel/
- CIAOPS Merch Store: https://my-store-c5d877-2.creator-spring.com/
- CIAOPS Publications: https://directorcia.gumroad.com
- Become a Patron: https://www.ciaopspatron.com/
- Direct Support: https://ko-fi.com/ciaops
- Get Your M365 Questions Answered: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/06/11/get-your-m365-questions-answered-via-email-2/
- Test Your Microsoft 365 Speed: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/07/21/test-your-microsoft-365-speed-in-seconds-for-free/
- CIAOPS Email list - https://bit.ly/cia-email
Show Notes
Shervin Shaffie - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sherv/
Principal Copilot Engineer at Microsoft
Collaboration Simplified YouTube: https://youtube.com/@collaborationsimplified
All About AI Podcast: https://cosi.pro/aipodcast
Monday Jan 26, 2026
Monday Jan 26, 2026
I am joined by Andrew and Tim from Sherpatech to discuss updates and new challenges in the insurance market. If you missed last year's episode you'll find it here Episode 338 - Ensure to Insure. We discuss what impact AI is likely to have and how the insurance market is shaping up for 2026. I also have a few interesting updates and information from the Microsoft cloud for this first episode of 2026. So listen along and enjoy!
Resources
- CIAOPS Need to Know Podcast: https://ciaops.podbean.com/
- CIAOPS Blog: https://blog.ciaops.com/
- CIAOPS Labs: https://blog.ciaopslabs.com/
- CIAOPS Brief: https://blog.ciaops.com/tag/cia-brief/
- Join the Teams Shared Channel: https://blog.ciaops.com/2022/07/29/join-my-teams-shared-channel/
- CIAOPS Merch Store: https://my-store-c5d877-2.creator-spring.com/
- CIAOPS Publications: https://directorcia.gumroad.com
- Become a Patron: https://www.ciaopspatron.com/
- Direct Support: https://ko-fi.com/ciaops
- Get Your M365 Questions Answered: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/06/11/get-your-m365-questions-answered-via-email-2/
- Test Your Microsoft 365 Speed: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/07/21/test-your-microsoft-365-speed-in-seconds-for-free/
- CIAOPS Email list - https://bit.ly/cia-email
Show Notes
Wednesday Dec 17, 2025
Wednesday Dec 17, 2025
Resources
- CIAOPS Need to Know Podcast: https://ciaops.podbean.com/
- CIAOPS Blog: https://blog.ciaops.com/
- CIAOPS Labs: https://blog.ciaopslabs.com/
- CIAOPS Brief: https://blog.ciaops.com/tag/cia-brief/
- Join the Teams Shared Channel: https://blog.ciaops.com/2022/07/29/join-my-teams-shared-channel/
- CIAOPS Merch Store: https://my-store-c5d877-2.creator-spring.com/
- Become a Patron: https://www.ciaopspatron.com/
- Direct Support: https://ko-fi.com/ciaops
- Get Your M365 Questions Answered: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/06/11/get-your-m365-questions-answered-via-email-2/
- Test Your Microsoft 365 Speed: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/07/21/test-your-microsoft-365-speed-in-seconds-for-free/
- CIAOPS Email list - https://bit.ly/cia-email
Announcements
-
Flight School: Mastering Copilot for IT Pros
A new training resource for IT professionals to maximize Copilot capabilities.
https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/14/flight-school-mastering-copilot-for-it-pros/
-
ACSC Essential Eight Maturity Level 3
Guidance on implementing security best practices with Microsoft 365 Business Premium.
https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/12/08/implementing-acsc-essential-eight-maturity-level-3-with-microsoft-365-business-premium-publication/
Show Notes
Monday Dec 01, 2025
Monday Dec 01, 2025
I am joined once again by Phil Meyer to review the most important and relevant announcements from Microsoft Ignite. Plenty around AI but also a few other gems you may have overlooked, so sit back and listen in as we focus on what you should be paying attention to.
Resources
- CIAOPS Need to Know Podcast: https://ciaops.podbean.com/
- CIAOPS Blog: https://blog.ciaops.com/
- CIAOPS Labs: https://blog.ciaopslabs.com/
- CIAOPS Brief: https://blog.ciaops.com/tag/cia-brief/
- Join the Teams Shared Channel: https://blog.ciaops.com/2022/07/29/join-my-teams-shared-channel/
- CIAOPS Merch Store: https://my-store-c5d877-2.creator-spring.com/
- Become a Patron: https://www.ciaopspatron.com/
- Direct Support: https://ko-fi.com/ciaops
- Get Your M365 Questions Answered: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/06/11/get-your-m365-questions-answered-via-email-2/
- Test Your Microsoft 365 Speed: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/07/21/test-your-microsoft-365-speed-in-seconds-for-free/
- CIAOPS Email list - https://bit.ly/cia-email
Announcements
Flight School: Mastering Copilot for IT Pros – https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/14/flight-school-mastering-copilot-for-it-pros/
CIAOPS Academy deprecation notification – https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/10/ciaops-academy-deprecation-notification/
Show Notes
Monday Nov 17, 2025
Monday Nov 17, 2025
In this episode of the Need to Know Podcast, we explore the evolving landscape of learning in the Microsoft Cloud ecosystem, with a spotlight on the SMB market. From the latest in Microsoft 365 Copilot innovations to critical cybersecurity updates and the end of CIAOPS Academy, this episode delivers essential insights for IT professionals and business leaders navigating the modern digital workplace.
Resources
- CIAOPS Need to Know Podcast: https://ciaops.podbean.com/
- CIAOPS Blog: https://blog.ciaops.com/
- CIAOPS Labs: https://blog.ciaopslabs.com/
- CIAOPS Brief: https://blog.ciaops.com/tag/cia-brief/
- Join the Teams Shared Channel: https://blog.ciaops.com/2022/07/29/join-my-teams-shared-channel/
- CIAOPS Merch Store: https://my-store-c5d877-2.creator-spring.com/
- Become a Patron: https://www.ciaopspatron.com/
- Direct Support: https://ko-fi.com/ciaops
- Get Your M365 Questions Answered: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/06/11/get-your-m365-questions-answered-via-email-2/
- Test Your Microsoft 365 Speed: https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/07/21/test-your-microsoft-365-speed-in-seconds-for-free/
- CIAOPS Email list - https://bit.ly/cia-email
Announcements
Flight School: Mastering Copilot for IT Pros – https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/14/flight-school-mastering-copilot-for-it-pros/
Disabling Office Macros via ASR to Meet Essential Eight Requirements – https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/13/disabling-office-macros-via-asr-to-meet-essential-eight-requirements/
ASD OWA settings check script – https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/13/asd-owa-settings-check-script/
ASD Mailflow settings check script – https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/12/asd-mailflow-settings-check-sript/
CIAOPS Academy deprecation notification – https://blog.ciaops.com/2025/11/10/ciaops-academy-deprecation-notification/
Show Notes
The weakest link: Stolen staff passwords now the biggest cyber threat to workplaces –
What’s New in Microsoft Intune: October 2025 –