Microsoft 365 Backup Gaps Persist As Enterprises Head Into 2026
Redmond, Thursday, February 12th, 2026
Microsoft MVP and consultant Ben Stegink is urging IT teams to reassess how they protect Microsoft 365 data, arguing that many enterprise backup strategies have not kept pace with the service's expanding footprint, configuration complexity and evolving threat landscape.
- Microsoft infrastructure uptime does not replace an organization's responsibility to back up its own Microsoft 365 data.
- Retention policies are designed for compliance and e-discovery, not operational restore.
- Teams conversations, Power Platform assets and restore performance limitations represent major blind spots in 2026 backup strategies.
Speaking during a recent Redmond Magazine webcast, "Rethinking Microsoft 365 Backup and Resilience for the Enterprise in 2026 and Beyond," Stegink outlined common misconceptions about cloud resilience and highlighted blind spots that remain even in organizations that believe they have backup coverage in place.