Microsoft May Be Trying to Earn Back Trust in Cybersecurity

On an earnings call last week, Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, told investors and analysts that the company would be “increasing its focus on cybersecurity.”

This likely isn’t a statement made by a CEO on an earnings call. Microsoft has repeatedly lost some trust in the industry, especially with government officials, as high-profile cyberattacks have happened on the company’s watch. In particular, U.S. Cyber Safety Review Board lambasted Microsoft in a review of a Chinese espionage campaign that targeted Microsoft. The Review Board said the attack was, “preventable and should never have occurred.”

On the call, Nadella said:

Security underpins every layer of the tech stack and it’s our No. 1 priority…We are doubling down on this very important work, putting security above all else, before all other features and investments.

Despite the shake in trust, and third-parties clamoring for the company’s cloud-service accounts, Microsoft is still the U.S. government’s main cloud vendor.