Microsoft is offering free cybersecurity tools to some government and commercial customers following criticism of its handling of a major Chinese hack that allegedly compromised U.S. government email accounts.
Starting in September, Microsoft cloud computing customers will not have to pay extra to access sensitive data that helps detect cyberattacks, Microsoft said Wednesday. The Wall Street Journal first reported on Microsoft's policy changes.
The move comes after cybersecurity officials privately complained that Microsoft had not done enough to capture allegations of cyber espionage in China, U.S. officials said. The campaign hit 20 organizations last week and went public. The State Department said it detected cyber activities and reported them to Microsoft in June.
One of the victims of the hacking was a human rights organization that could not detect activities because it did not pay for premium software licenses, according to Volexiti, a U.S. cybersecurity company that works with human rights groups.
According to experts, logs, or computer files that collect artifacts about hacking, are critical to understanding and preventing cyberattacks. Until now, Microsoft's business model has included charging customers extra for access to these logs. With customers around the world and more data than most other companies in the security industry, Microsoft's decision could have a far-reaching impact on customers' security posture, analysts said.
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