Microsoft reportedly bans its employees from using Slack for security reasons and encourages them to to use the Microsoft Teams app instead

Bryan Thomas/Getty Images

• Microsoft does not allow its employees to use Slack, GeekWire's Nat Levy and Todd Bishop reported, citing an internal document.
• While Microsoft has a rival workplace chat app, Microsoft Teams, the tech company reportedly cites security risks as the reason for its internal Slack ban.
• Slack named Microsoft as its primary competitor in a regulatory filing sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission in April, and Microsoft listed Slack among its competitors in its most recent annual report.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Microsoft does not allow its employees to use Slack, GeekWire's Nat Levy and Todd Bishop reported, citing an internal document.

Read more: Inside Slack's direct listing: Here's what actually went down between the tech company and its Wall Street advisers

Complimentary Tech Event

Transform talent with learning that works

Capability development is critical for businesses who want to push the envelope of innovation.Discover how business leaders are strategizing around building talent capabilities and empowering employee transformation.Know More

While Microsoft has a rival workplace chat app, called Microsoft Teams, the tech company reportedly cites security risks as the reason for its internal Slack ban. The company gives the following explanation in an internal list of software and online services it restricts or discourages employees from using, according to GeekWire:

Slack Free, Slack Standard and Slack Plus versions do not provide required controls to properly protect Microsoft Intellectual Property (IP). Existing users of these solutions should migrate chat history and files related to Microsoft business to Microsoft Teams, which offers the same features and integrated Office 365 apps, calling and meeting functionality. Learn more about the additional features that Teams can provide your workgroup. Slack Enterprise Grid version complies with Microsoft security requirements; however, we encourage use of Microsoft Teams rather than a competitive software.

Microsoft also reportedly prohibits employees from using the grammar-checking app Grammarly and the Kapersky security software. It discourages employees from using Amazon Web Services, Google Docs, PagerDuty, and the cloud version of GitHub, according to GeekWire.

Microsoft and Slack did not immediately respond to Business Insider's requests for comment.

Slack named Microsoft as its primary competitor in a regulatory filing sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission in April, and Microsoft listed Slack among its competitors in its most recent annual report. Microsoft launched Teams in 2016, seven years after Slack was founded.

Slack began listing its shares on public markets on Thursday. They closed 5% below their debut price on Friday.

Read GeekWire's full story here.

• Read more:
• Slack has made chat hot. But here's why Google's Gmail product boss says chat is going to be swallowed up by email.
• Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield is newly engaged to a woman who runs a $1.4 billion startup. Inside the relationship of Silicon Valley's newest 'it' power couple.
• Doing a direct listing like Slack can be a huge boon to employees and investors, but experts say it'll stay an anomaly for 1 key reason
• Slack had a great day! But if you actually look at the numbers, its business is incredibly overhyped.

Get the latest Microsoft stock price here.