Changes to Microsoft Teams Chat Retention

Overview

As part of Vancouver Island University’s ongoing commitment to improving records management and ensuring data security, we are introducing a new 30-day retention policy for all individual Microsoft Teams chat messages.  

Timeline

This policy will take effect at 10 am on December 19, 2024, and will apply to all VIU Teams users.

What's Changing?

Individual Teams chat messages, which are private, one-on-one communications (similar to phone calls or in-person conversations) that are meant to disappear after the exchange, will be subject to this policy. This includes direct messages in individual chats, group chats, meeting chats, bot chats, and Microsoft 365 Copilot interactions, which are also considered one-on-one communications. These messages will be automatically deleted after 30 days.  

Chat messages within designated Teams channels, related to projects, groups, or committees, will not be impacted. These messages are meant to serve as a record for the entire team and will be retained as usual. 

The policy is designed to enhance the security and confidentiality of VIU communications. It also encourages users to adopt more structured and efficient communication practices, such as using designated Teams Channels for important discussions. This will improve organization, tracking, and retention of messages in clearly defined spaces. 

We advise all employees and students to review their chat history before the policy’s implementation. Save any important messages that you may need in the future, as messages deleted after 30 days cannot be recovered. 

For long-term or project-critical discussions, we encourage you to move these conversations into designated Teams Channels or consider using email as an alternative communication tool.  

Frequently Asked Questions

  • After 30 days, can a Teams message be recovered by IT? 
    No. Once the 30-day retention period has passed, the message is permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. 
  • Can I request an exception to the policy? 
    No. This policy is applied consistently across all users at VIU. There are no exceptions, as the goal is to ensure everyone is aware that private messages have a set retention period, regardless of who they are sent to. 
  • Will files I’ve added to a Teams chat be deleted after 30 days? 
    No. Files shared in a Teams chat are stored in the uploader’s OneDrive and are not subject to the retention policy. Only the messages within the chat will be deleted after 30 days, not the files. 
  • Can IT migrate messages from a Teams chat into a Team for me? 
    IT cannot migrate messages from a Teams group chat into a regular Team’s channel. If you need to preserve the content of a chat, it is your responsibility to manage and transfer relevant information. 
  • Can IT migrate files from a Teams group chat into a Team for me? 
    Files in a Teams group chat are stored in the OneDrive of the person who uploaded them. If the members of a private chat want to move everything to a regular Team, they must manually migrate the files, if needed. 
    • Files may exist in multiple locations: 
      • If a file was uploaded via "Attach cloud files", the source file remains in the OneDrive of the person who uploaded it.
      • If a file was uploaded via "Upload from this device", the file is copied from the uploader’s PC to their OneDrive in the "Microsoft Teams Chat Files" folder. This folder has no structured organization—it's simply a collection of all files uploaded into Teams. 
  • Does this policy apply to all employees? 
    Yes, the policy applies to all employees at VIU. 
  • Does this policy apply to all students? 
    Yes, the policy applies to all students at VIU. 
  • Does this policy affect Q & A logs?
    No. Q&A logs are not affected at this time.

Still Have Questions?

For technical questions, please contact ithelp@viu.ca. For policy-specific questions, please contact privacy.officer@viu.ca