MC1411435: Microsoft 365 Copilot Adds Domain Exclusion for Web Grounding to Give Admins Greater Control

3 minutes
MWPRO IMPACT SCORE
OPERATIONAL IMPACT
49
0 25 50 75 100
MODERATE IMPACT • ASSESS BUSINESS IMPACT
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Primary Audience

Tenant AdminsMicrosoft 365 AdminsSecurity TeamsCompliance TeamsIT ManagersService Owners
Why this score?
AI Confidence
HIGH
Enough detail is available to trust this assessment.
Assessment Reasoning
Domain exclusion for Copilot web grounding is a new control now becoming generally available. Admins must take action to configure exclusions for compliance or policy alignment using PowerShell. There is no default change and no direct user experience impact unless exclusions are applied. Effort involves planning, testing and scripting rather than migration, so urgency is moderate during the rollout window.
64
🛡️ Admin Impact
HIGH
12
👥 User Impact
LOW
55
⚡ Urgency
HIGH
48
🔧 Effort
MEDIUM
ℹ️ WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
📌

AT A GLANCE

You can now block specific domains from being used in Copilot web-grounded answers. This gives more control over where Copilot pulls external content.
👥

END USERS

No major end-user change expected.
🛡️

IT ADMINS

Review if you need to exclude any domains and apply settings using the provided PowerShell script.
📅

ROLLOUT TIMELINE

Rolling out:
In progress

📢 Official Microsoft Message Center Announcement

Microsoft 365 Copilot: Domain exclusion for web grounding
Message ID: MC1411435 (Updated)

[What and why]

Microsoft is introducing Domain Exclusion for Microsoft 365 Copilot, now generally available. This feature enables administrators to exclude specific domains from web grounding so that Copilot responses align with organizational policies and trusted sources. This capability gives admins greater control over how external web content is used in Copilot experiences.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 503144.

[Rollout schedule]

  1. General Availability (Worldwide): Beginning mid-July 2026 and expected to complete late July 2026
  2. PowerShell script available: July 16, 2026

[Impact on your organization]

Who is affected

  1. Microsoft 365 administrators managing Copilot configuration

Platforms and services

  1. Microsoft 365 Copilot
  2. Copilot Chat
  3. Web grounding scenarios

What will happen

  1. Admins can define up to 1,000 domains to exclude from Copilot web grounding.
  2. Excluded domains will not be used in Copilot responses that rely on web grounding.
  3. The feature is not enabled by default and requires admin action.
  4. There is no change to the user experience unless configured by admins.

[Action required and recommendations]

No action is required for this feature to become available in your tenant.

Learn more: Learn documentation and PowerShell script will be available upon GA at: https://aka.ms/copilot/DomainExclusion

[Compliance considerations]

QuestionAnswer
Does the change introduce or significantly modify AI or machine learning capabilities that interact with or provide access to customer data?Yes. Admins can configure domain exclusion to exclude up to 1,000 domains from Copilot web grounding
Does the change include an admin control and, can it be controlled through Entra ID group membership?Yes. Administrators can configure domain exclusions using a PowerShell script.

Source: Microsoft Message Center • Analysed by MWPro

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