Teams app -Privacy

Your OneDrive is private by default unless you choose to share files or folders. For the other apps you mentioned, which one are you referring to specifically?

Also, what do you mean by “private” anyway? If you are using an account provided by your employer or school, anything stored there is considered organizational data. That means it can be subject to your organization’s policies and oversight, so it’s best to keep personal content out of those accounts and use them only for work or school related items.

OneDrive and other Microsoft apps already include privacy controls; they do not automatically make content public. Privacy is managed per service and sometimes per file or folder.

For OneDrive (including files accessed via Teams):

• Personal OneDrive files are private by default. Only explicitly shared items are visible to others.
• A special Shared with everyone folder may exist where items are visible to everyone in the organization, typically with Can view permissions. Avoid storing confidential files there.
• To control access to Word or other Office documents stored in OneDrive/SharePoint/Teams, use the sharing and permissions options on each file or folder (for example, stop sharing or change who can view/edit).

To manage what apps on Windows can access personal data (like files, camera, microphone, contacts):

1. Open Start > Settings > Privacy & security.
2. Select the capability (for example, Files, Camera, Microphone, Contacts, Calendar).
3. Turn access on or off for the device and then for individual apps.

For other Microsoft services (Skype, LinkedIn, Outlook.com, Bing, OneDrive mobile, etc.), privacy is managed inside each app:

• Skype: Profile picture > Settings > Privacy.
• LinkedIn: Profile icon (Me) > Settings & Privacy (or Settings > Data privacy in the app).
• Bing: Sign in to Bing.com and adjust Bing privacy settings.
• Outlook.com: Settings > General > Privacy and data.
• OneDrive mobile: Settings > Camera upload and related options.

There is no single global “make everything private” switch. Privacy is controlled:

• Per storage location (OneDrive/SharePoint/Teams).
• Per app (Skype, LinkedIn, Outlook, Bing, etc.).
• Per capability on Windows (camera, microphone, files, contacts, etc.).

To keep OneDrive and other apps private, review and adjust the privacy or sharing settings in each service and in Windows privacy settings as described above.

References:

• Manage document privacy
• Manage access to your Word documents
• Where can I find privacy settings in Microsoft products?
• Windows privacy settings that apps use
• Your Microsoft account, your data, your choices