Australia's spy agency and federal police hit by global Microsoft outage

Australia's spy agency and federal police were among organizations affected by a global Microsoft outage on Friday, prompting the government to activate an agreement for priority service restoration. The outage disrupted access to Microsoft 365, Outlook, and Teams worldwide for hours. ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess and AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett confirmed their agencies were impacted, while Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke stated Microsoft did not believe the incident was a cyber attack. Burke said the government activated a formal cyber agreement with Microsoft to ensure Australia receives prioritised restoration of services. He noted this was the first such agreement signed on Australia's behalf.