November 13, 2026
A significant but uneven Microsoft 365 disruption affected users across multiple regions, with impacts varying by service. While the event is not expected to produce widespread insurance losses, it highlights the broader risks of dependence on interconnected technology providers.
Event: Microsoft 365 experienced a significant but uneven, multi-region disruption affecting Outlook and Exchange Online and, to varying degrees, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, and other services. Recovery appeared to be progressing by November 13. The incident was limited to Microsoft 365 services and should not be characterized as a complete platform outage. No cyberattack or data compromise had been reported.
Insurance impact: Overall, the impact on the insurance market is expected to be minimal, with most losses likely limited to short-term productivity and operational delays. Claims may nevertheless arise where policyholders relied on Microsoft 365 for critical, time-sensitive, or revenue-generating activities and the applicable waiting period was exceeded. The event also highlights the systemic and accumulation risks associated with reliance on a dominant technology provider, even where individual claims remain limited.
Interconnected systems and resilience: The disruption demonstrates how dependencies across email, collaboration, data storage, scheduling, and other connected services can create systemic exposure. For insurers, this reinforces the importance of understanding these dependencies, as well as the role of contingency planning and alternative processes in maintaining critical operations.
Marsh Re will continue to monitor developments, including Microsoft’s root-cause analysis and any ongoing regional or tenant-specific impacts. We will provide further updates as similar technology-service events develop and where they may have meaningful implications for clients, coverage, or portfolio accumulation.