A recent security event revealed a weakness in Outlook’s calendar-sharing settings. It was previously possible to share detailed calendar information with people outside the organization, and it was far too easy to accidentally share this level of detail with everyone in our organization.  

University IT and URMC ISD are making changes to better protect the sensitive information that sometimes lives within a calendar event. Read on to understand the recent and future changes. 

External Sharing 

Going forward, you will not be able to share calendar event details with any application or entity outside the University. You may continue to share free/busy information, but the option to share additional details, such as subject, location, or attachments, will be removed.   

If you currently share these additional details externally, your settings will be reset and disabled on Monday, Dec. 2. 

Internal Sharing 

When sharing your calendar internally, there is a setting for how you share with “people in my organization.” That setting has been reset to “can view when I’m busy”. You can still share more details and delegate permissions with specific people in the organization. However, you should not share everything with everyone in our organization. 

Alternate Calendar/Scheduling Options 

Here are a few ways you can safely share your calendar or set up a centralized view of your personal and professional calendars: 

(Links require login to M365)

Sharing Your Outlook Calendar with Coworkers.pdf 

Sync a Personal Calendar to Outlook.pdf 

Bookings with Me in Outlook.mp4 

If you need assistance, please contact the University IT Help Desk at 585-275-2000 or the URMC ISD Help Desk at 585-275-3200