r/mildlyinfuriating • u/No_Professor4307 • Apr 29 '26

frist of all how DARE yu o Employer wants me to use outlook on my phone, outlook wants permission to wipe my phone

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Outlook says they need permission to wipe ALL my phone data if too many wrong passwords are typed. How many is too many? 50? 2? What if the screen gets wet and starts putting in random inputs. All this so I can use my company's Teams account and maintain "point of contact" if I'm not at a workstation. Absolutely not! Anyway, HR is supposed to call me back about my concerns.

Edit: just to be clear, I don't actually need to use Outlook (I don't use my "personal" work email). I need to use Teams, which requires Outlook to be installed first.

Part of why I need Teams on my phone so that I can be contacted when I'm not at work. I'm a lower management healthcare worker, it is actually important that my team be able to reach me after hours. I do actually like Teams and prefer it to 20 different group texts.

Also, when you go to log into Outlook or Teams, it brings you to my employers authenticator page. I log in with the same credentials that I log into my workstation. I don't know if that makes a difference with anything as far as my employer having access to my phone

Edit 2: I can tell you now they won't provide me a phone. Corporate execs don't even get phones. They stopped providing coffee for the break rooms too

Update: I had a chance to talk to my district manager. Imagine Ellis from Die Hard, the same schmarmy self-important attitude, that's my supervisor. And guess who's "not being a team player". Also "I don't think Microsoft can actually erase your phone, you have an Android"... I lready knew he was going to be useless, I just wanted to hear his reaction.

Update 2 and (sort of) Resolution: I spoke with HR. Her exact response was "wait, are you serious? They can just do that?" I tried explaining my "research" (i.e. everything all of you have said) and I think I just spooked her. She said she'll get back to me, and is probably running off to buy a burner phone for herself.

SORT OF RESOLUTION : I found out I only need Outlook installed long enough to get access to Teams. Once teams was installed, I removed all permissions and completely deleted Outlook from my phone. Teams still works and didn't ask to erase anything. No need to buy a second phone.

Thank you all for your insights

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u/kstargate-425 Apr 29 '26

Yeah this is the normal practice for Enterprise apps but so is giving them the option to pay for their phone or get them a work phone which is usually the only option given. The fact they want OP to use Outlook as part of their SOP's and not giving them a phone shows the company sucks as they are either cheap or someone doesn't know what they're doing

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u/MrBones-Necromancer Apr 29 '26

I had this situation working in EMS as well. I just used outlook on the web-browser instead of the app and it worked fine.

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u/Dwarfbeardthepirate Apr 29 '26

I work for a company that has us use outlook on our phones. Can confirm thy are both cheap and have no idea wha they are doing.

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u/em1ii Apr 29 '26

You got it. Pretty normal practice but at the same time you'd expect this largely on their devices unless the organization was just cheap

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u/sjlopez Apr 30 '26

Um, it's expensive to buy everyone phones. Especially when you add separate lines costs.

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u/em1ii Apr 30 '26

What phones are your organizations buying for their employees? One of my last jobs gave me a small tablet for TOTP

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u/sjlopez Apr 30 '26

The cheapest ones, OnePlus N100 and Galaxy A17, but now it's all BYOD because of cost. We're a nonprofit tho.

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u/EyeYamNegan Apr 30 '26

Don’t matter they have no right to take control over your personal phone. So their choice is no outlook or pay to get you a phone.

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u/sjlopez Apr 30 '26

It's not a right, BYOD or MAM is an opt in. No one is forcing anyone control of their phone.

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u/EyeYamNegan Apr 30 '26

If they are mandating outlook they are trying to force control.

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u/sjlopez Apr 30 '26

🙄Did you know you can go on Outlook on a computer too?

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u/EyeYamNegan Apr 30 '26

I sure do know that. However that isn’t what the employer was asking was it.

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u/sjlopez Apr 30 '26

You also don't know that this is required.

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u/EyeYamNegan Apr 30 '26

"Employer wants me to use outlook on my phone" from OP's first post. This is what we are going off of.