News Office Macro Blocking by Default Coming This Year for Some Windows Users By Kurt Mackie 02/08/2022 ...

Microsoft’s macro-blocking feature will soon start rolling out to Access, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio and Word on Windows. The change won’t affect Office for Mac, Android or iOS devices.

Microsoft plans to block by default VBA macros obtained from the internet in Office on devices running Windows. This will impact Access, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, and Word, according to a February ...

Microsoft has rolled back a block on Office macros sourced from the internet that created a major obstacle to phishing and malware threats delivered via email attachments and links.

VBA Macros are lines of code that allow users to automate routine processes — like data collection or running certain tasks — in Microsoft Office applications.

Office on macOS also offers tools to better protect against malicious macros. For example, macOS uses the platform’s sandbox to limit the damage caused by a malicious document.

Use Group Policy, Office cloud policy service (OCPS), or other endpoint management tools to control the use of XLM macros. Beginning with Excel build 16.0.14427.10000, XLM 4.0 macros are now disabled.

Macros are one of the oldest and most valuable tools in the computer world, but they can be used to create harmful results, too. Here’s how to stay safe.