Microsoft and Google are removing the ability to use Basic authentication in Exchange Online for Exchange ActiveSync (EAS), POP, IMAP, Remote PowerShell, Exchange Web Services (EWS), Offline Address Book (OAB), Autodiscover, Outlook for Windows, and Outlook for Mac.

To read more about the deprecation of Basic authentication in Exchange Online, refer to this recently published article from Microsoft: Deprecation of Basic authentication

For many years, applications have used Basic authentication to connect to servers, services, and API endpoints. Basic authentication simply means the application sends a username and password with every request, and those credentials are also often stored or saved on the device. Traditionally, Basic authentication is enabled by default on most servers or services, and is simple to set up. Simplicity isn't at all bad, but Basic authentication makes it easier for attackers to capture user credentials.

This decision requires customers to move from apps that use basic authentication to apps that use Modern authentication. Modern authentication, also referred to as OAuth token-based authorization,  has many benefits and improvements that help mitigate the issues in basic authentication.

For all accounts, users that are successfully integrated will remain connected until deprecation is complete. For users that do not have IMAP integration enabled, the Email Folder section the (I want to configure Email Integration) field has been removed.

For firms utilizing the Gmail IMAP integration, this change only affects email mapping to matters. This will not affect your Google Calendar sync because Google currently uses OAuth token-based authorization.

For firms using Microsoft Office 365, Rocket Matter offers a powerful integration that can be enabled from your user profile. To get started with our Office 365 integration, click here! With this integration, you can also enjoy the additional benefits of Outlook Calendar, Microsoft Word and Powerpoint available on desktop, and online versions.

Rocket Matter is working on providing OAuth functionality sometime this year. Feel free to check back for updates later this year!