Trouble emerged for tech giant Microsoft (MSFT) as concerns about privacy in Microsoft SharePoint came to light. Apparently, the Air Force expressed those concerns and warned Airmen about the development. That did Microsoft no favors, and shares slipped modestly in Tuesday afternoon’s trading.
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The Air Force sent warnings about “…critical Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and Protected Health Information (PHI) exposure related to USAF SharePoint permissions.” That could be a problem, as information of this stripe can do some real damage if it gets out into the wild. With over 6,000 SharePoint sites and libraries spread out over numerous Air Force commands, it may also hint at a larger problem waiting in the wings.
The Air Force is already taking steps, however. SharePoint sites will be blocked, and Microsoft Teams access will be cut off as the Air Force investigates the data breach accordingly. Reports noted that a vulnerability had been found in SharePoint servers as far back as July, but the issue did not “…affect cloud-based SharePoint installations in Microsoft 365…” at the time.
Xbox: Still a Thing
Microsoft’s gaming interests also took a bit of a hit, as Microsoft had to directly confirm that Microsoft was not departing the gaming market or phasing out its gaming hardware. Plans to release a next-generation Xbox backed up with AMD (AMD) hardware were, indeed, slated to continue.
This means that many of the previous rumors are back on the table, including the notion of Steam support to bring a vast library of formerly PC-only games to Xbox, particularly those that have Xbox controller support. There is nothing confirmed on that as of yet, but if it does come to pass, it will open up substantial new opportunities and revenue streams for Microsoft.
Is Microsoft a Buy, Hold or Sell?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on MSFT stock based on 34 Buys and one Hold assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 27.46% rally in its share price over the past year, the average MSFT price target of $628.05 per share implies 20.15% upside potential.
