Digital forensic investigators have a duty to understand the relevant components of the cases that they work. However, with the constant evolution of technologies, and the release of new platforms and programs, it is impossible for an investigator to be familiar with every application they encounter. It can also be difficult to know how forensic tools handle certain applications. This is why forensic researchers study and document new and emerging technologies, platforms, and applications, so that investigators have resources to utilize whenever they encounter an unfamiliar element in a case.<br><div><br></div><div>n 2017, Microsoft released a new communication platform, Microsoft Teams(Koenigsbauer, 2017). Due to the application’s relatively young age, there has not been any significant forensic research relating to Microsoft Teams. This platform as of April 2021 had 145million daily active users (Wright, 2021), nearly double the number of daily users at the same time in 2020 (Zaveri, 2020). This rapid growth is attributed in part to the need to work from home due to the COVID-19 virus (Zaveri, 2020). Given the size of its user base, it seems likely that forensic investigators will encounter cases where Microsoft Teams is a relevant component but may not have the knowledge required to efficiently investigate the platform.<br></div><div><br></div><div>To help fill this gap, an analysis of data stored at rest by Microsoft Teams was conducted, both on the Windows 10 operating system as well as on mobile operating systems, such as IOS and Android has been conducted. Basic functionality such as messaging, sharing files, participating in video conferences, and other functionalities that Teams provides were performed in an isolated testing environment. These devices were analyzed with both automated forensic tools, and non automated investigation. Specifically, Cellebrite UFED for the mobile devices, and Magnet AXIOM for the Windows device were used. Manual or non-automated investigation recovered, at least partially, the majority of artifacts across all three devices. In this study, the forensic tools used did not recover many of the artifacts that were found with manual investigation. These discovered artifacts, and the results of the tools, are documented in the hopes of aiding future investigations.<br></div><div><br></div>

With today's increased digitalization, organizations face the challenge of finding new and more effective ways for employees to collaborate, communicate and save documentation through digital tools. The purpose of this study was to investigate implementation of a digital communication tool in a large private international organisation. The study has combined the perspectives of implementation project leaders and users of the tool, in order to get a full understanding of the implementation process. The following research questions were addressed: How can we understand the process of implementing digital tools from a project leader perspective? How does the user perspective add to the understanding of the process of implementing new digital tools? The study involved eight semi-structured interviews withproject leaders and users. A thematic analysis of the data was conducted. Results show that there is a discrepancy between the project leaders’ understanding of implementing digital tools and the users’ understanding. Project leaders and users had differing views on the precise nature of the problems that needed to be solved by the new digital tool. Linked to this,project leaders had a longer-term organisational perspective on the problems to be solved, whilst users had a shorter-term focus on their own work within the organisation and the immediate technical needs thrown up by this. These different perspectives were reflected in the two groups’ different views on the success, or otherwise, of the implementation process.

With the rise of remote working, business communication platforms such as Microsoft Teams have become indispensable tools deeply ingrained in the workflow of every employee. However, their increasing importance have made the identification and analysis of covert channels a critical concern for both individuals and organizations. In fact, covert channels can be utilized to facilitate unauthorized data transfers or enable malicious activities, thereby compromising confidentiality and system integrity. Unfortunately, traditional detection methods for covert channels may face challenges in detecting covert channels in such cloud-based platforms, as the complexities introduced may not be adequately addressed. Despite the importance of the issue, a comprehensive analysis of covert channels in business communication platforms has been lacking. In fact, to the best of the our knowledge, this Master’s thesis represents the first endeavor in identifying and analysing covert channels within Microsoft Teams. To address this problem, an in-depth literature review was conducted to identify existing research and techniques related to covert channels, their detection and their countermeasures. A thorough analysis of Microsoft Teams was then carried out and a threat scenario was selected. Through extensive experimentation and analysis, three covert channels were then identified, exploited and compared based on bandwidth, robustness and efficiency. This thesis sheds light on the diversity of covert channels in Microsoft Teams, providing valuable insights on their functioning and characteristics. The insights gained from this work pave the way for future research on effective detection systems for covert channels in cloud-based environments, fostering a proactive approach towards securing digital business communication. / Med ökningen av distansarbete har företagskommunikationsplattformar som Microsoft Teams blivit oumbärliga verktyg som är djupt rotade i arbetsflödet för varje anställd. Deras ökande betydelse har dock gjort identifiering och analys av dolda kanaler till ett kritiskt problem för både individer och organisationer. I själva verket kan dolda kanaler användas för att underlätta obehöriga dataöverföringar eller möjliggöra skadliga aktiviteter, vilket äventyrar sekretess och systemintegritet. Tyvärr kan traditionella detekteringsmetoder för dolda kanaler möta utmaningar när det gäller att upptäcka dolda kanaler i sådana molnbaserade plattformar, eftersom komplexiteten som introduceras kanske inte hanteras på ett adekvat sätt. Trots frågans betydelse har det saknats en omfattande analys av dolda kanaler i plattformar för affärskommunikation. Såvitt vi vet är denna masteruppsats det första försöket att identifiera och analysera dolda kanaler inom Microsoft Teams. För att ta itu med detta problem genomfördes en djupgående litteraturgenomgång för att identifiera befintlig forskning och tekniker relaterade till dolda kanaler, deras upptäckt och deras motåtgärder. Därefter gjordes en grundlig analys av Microsoft Teams och ett hotscenario valdes ut. Genom omfattande experiment och analys identifierades, utnyttjades och jämfördes sedan tre dolda kanaler baserat på bandbredd, robusthet och effektivitet. Denna avhandling belyser mångfalden av dolda kanaler i Microsoft Teams och ger värdefulla insikter om deras funktion och egenskaper. Insikterna från detta arbete banar väg för framtida forskning om effektiva detekteringssystem för hemliga kanaler i molnbaserade miljöer, vilket främjar en proaktiv strategi för att säkra digital affärskommunikation.

Working together at distance is no easy thing and the usability of the digital workspaces used is of utmost importance. Companies providing these digital workspaces constantly needs to evaluate the usability to find problems and improve their product with design principles for designing interactive systems. The purpose of this study is to contribute with knowledge of the usability of the digital workspace MS Teams. There are several methods for usability evaluation but the most fundamental is to test with real users, a usability test. The method used to evaluate the usability of Microsoft Teams is a usability tests with participants as close to the intended end-users as possible and with post-test interviews after each test. During the usability test the participants were observed whilst using the product and thinking aloud. Thinking aloud is the participant, while using the product, continuously think out loud which gives the researcher an opportunity to understand how the participants view the product and to identify any misconceptions they might have. The main results show that there are several usability problems with Microsoft Teams especially during the log on process and with changing output source. At the same time the results show that sharing files and calling are some of Microsoft Teams strengths in regard to usability and that the perceived usability of Microsoft Teams is high.

This study examines employees' perceptions of digital internal communication channels in relation to their effectiveness and usability within a specific organization. By employing a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative data from interviews and quantitative data from surveys, various themes were explored. The study investigates participants' preferences, the primary communication channels utilized, and their perspectives on the effectiveness and usability of these channels. The findings indicate that employees predominantly favor Microsoft Teams and email as their preferred communication channels, citing ease of use, functionality and information sharing as key factors. Recognizing and understanding employees' preferences can enable the organization to identify and optimize effective communication channels for internal processes, fostering an environment that is more efficient and conducive to collaboration.  It is crucial to acknowledge the study's limitations. The findings are context-specific and may not be readily generalizable to other settings. Alternative interpretations of the results are possible, necessitating further research to delve deeper into these aspects. By considering the insights from this study, organizations can make informed decisions to improve and select appropriate digital internal communication channels tailored to their specific requirements.

Distansarbete har under de senaste åren blivit alltmer vanligt förekommande. Verksamheterbedrivs på distans vilket gör att nya sätt att arbeta, samarbeta och kommunicera har blivitaktuella. För att underlätta distansarbetande grupper används samverkande system somfungerar som en gemensam digital arbetsyta där medarbetare ska kunna synkronisera sittarbete med varandra. Synkroniseringen innebär att användare kunna samverka i realtid vilketdessvärre inte alltid fungerat smärtfritt. Synkroniseringsproblem har medfört hinder i arbetet,förlorade data och tidsförluster. Microsoft Teams är ett av de samverkande system som tillstörsta grad ansetts fungera effektivt vid distansarbete, hur kommer det sig och vad är det ettsamverkande system behöver tillhandahålla sina användare för att uppnå en synkronisering påen systemnivå? Denna studie syftar till att genom en fallstudie identifiera och beskriva vilka kriterier ettsamverkande system behöver uppfylla för att uppnå synkronisering på en systemnivå.Genomförandet har utgått från en litteraturstudie som resulterade i en analysmodell överkriterier hos ett samverkande system för att uppnå synkronisering på en systemnivå. Utifrånanalysmodellen utformades en semi-strukturerad intervjuguide och intervjuer hölls däreftermed åtta respondenter från fallföretaget. Respondenternas intervjusvar sammanställdes till ettresultat som sedan analyserades tillsammans med resultatet från litteraturstudien. Analysen resulterade slutligen i en modifiering av analysmodellen eftersom resultatet frånintervjuerna inte överensstämde med de kriterier hos ett samverkande system som identifieratsi litteraturstudien. Den primära slutsatsen som dragits utifrån den modifierade analysmodellenär att användares status, användares aktivitet, projektplanering, versionshistorik ochresursstruktur är kriterier hos samverkande system som krävs för att uppnå en synkroniseringpå en systemnivå. Ytterligare drogs slutsatsen att kriterierna hos ett samverkande system varoch en påverkar synkroniseringen på en systemnivå genom möjligheten till kommunikation,samarbete och produktivitet. Slutligen har slutsatsen dragits att användare aktivt kan skapa sigen medvetenhet kring det de själva behöver för att uppnå en synkronisering i det samverkandesystemet om kriterierna synliggörs.

Som en effekt av COVID-19 pandemin har preferenserna kring arbetssättet förändrats. Det finns ett ökat behov hos medarbetare att arbeta flexibelt och för att bemöta detta har organisationer infört hybridarbete inom verksamheten. För att hybridarbete ska fungera är digitala plattformar väsentliga då de kan användas för kommunikation och erbjuda funktioner för att upprätthålla engagemang och välmående. Medarbetare som använder digitala plattformar kan interagera med dem på olika vis då de kan ha skilda mål att uppnå. Detta kan i sin tur leda till att anställda uppfattar olika möjligheter med samma tekniska objekt. Syftet med denna studie är att få en ökad förståelse kring digitala plattformar och dess roll vid ett hybridarbetssätt, samt hur verktygen påverkar arbetssättet hos medarbetare från olika avdelningar. För att besvara syftet har följande frågeställningar tagits fram: 1. Vilka möjligheter och begränsningar upplever medarbetare med digitala plattformar i förhållande till deras hybridarbetssätt? 2. Vilka likheter eller skillnader finns mellan avdelningar i relation till upplevda möjligheter och begränsningar? För att försöka besvara frågeställningarna genomfördes en litteraturgenomgång och en kvalitativ ansats applicerades med semistrukturerade intervjuer. Intervjuerna genomfördes med fyra respondenter från olika avdelningar inom ett mjukvarubolag, som visades använda Microsoft Teams som digital plattform. Studien tillämpade affordance theory för att belysa möjligheter och begränsningar som medarbetare från olika avdelningar uppfattar med Microsoft Teams. Studien resulterade i att tre möjligheter och fem begränsningar kunde identifieras med Microsoft Teams. Microsoft Teams erbjuder möjligheter i form av interaktiva möten, delning och mottagning av information och kunskap samt att visa tillgänglighet. Begränsningarna som identifierades baseras på prestanda, att hitta information, brist på funktionalitet, uppkoppling och inlärningskurva. Studien kunde även identifiera likheter och skillnader mellan medarbetarna, däremot kan de baseras på andra faktorer än att personerna arbetar inom olika avdelningar. / As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, preferences regarding work methods have changed. There is an increased demand among employees to work flexibly, and to address this, organizations have implemented a hybrid work approach within their enterprise. For hybrid work to be beneficial, digital platforms are essential as they can be used for communication and provide features to maintain engagement and wellbeing. Employees who use digital platforms can interact with them in different ways as they may have different goals to achieve. This, in turn, can lead to employees perceiving different possibilities with the same technological object. The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of digital platforms and their role in a hybrid work environment, as well as how these tools impact the work methods of employees from different departments. To answer the purpose, the following research questions have been formulated: 1. What opportunities and limitations do employees experience with digital platforms in relation to their hybrid work approach? 2. What similarities or differences exist between departments regarding perceived opportunities and limitations? To address these research questions, a literature review was performed, and a qualitative approach was applied using semi-structured interviews. The interviews were conducted with four respondents from different departments within a software company, and it was established that the company uses Microsoft Teams as a digital platform. The study applied the affordance theory to display the opportunities and limitations perceived by employees from different departments, when using Microsoft Teams. The study resulted in the identification of three opportunities and five limitations with Microsoft Teams. Microsoft Teams offers opportunities in the form of interactive meetings, sharing and receiving information and knowledge, as well as displaying availability. The identified limitations were based on performance, finding information, lack of functionality, connectivity, and learning curve. The study also identified similarities and differences among the employees, however these may be based on other aspects than the fact that the individuals are working in different departments.

As a result of covid-19, there has been an increase of digitalisation in society and remote-work has therefore also increased. Workplaces have sent employees home and meetings have taken place through video calls over the internet. Remote-work is not evenly distributed across different occupational groups, but within financial institutions, the majority of work can be performed in an independent location. The purpose of this paper is to gain an increased understanding of the experience of usability within digital conference tools. This paper examines the perceived usefulness of conference tools by applying the theories Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA). This paper uses both a questionnaire and interviews to answer the research question. The result indicates that the experience of usability has a TAM score of 75,39 for the total average at financial institutions. One difference that the study found was the experience of usability based on the length of time the employee has used Microsoft Teams at financial institutions, the less time of use, the lower the score. This means that there may be a learning need of Microsoft Teams. Positive experiences for Microsoft Teams perceived usability, which can be generalized to more conference tools, are time-saving, efficient and good functionality. Negative experiences for Microsoft Teams perceived usability, which also can be generalized to more conference tools, are file management, resource-heavy and impersonal.

This research paper studies the extent of how microinteractions are utilized in Microsoft Teams and the impact that they have on workflow efficiencies, specifically in the creative industry. In a novel time where Covid-19 virus has increased the demand of digital platforms, the importance of research within remote meeting utilization, and the interaction possibilities within, is of utter importance. Also, since we are missing out on the spontaneous interactions that occur when meeting face-to-face, the microinteractions within digital meeting platforms now carry a heavier weight when interactions are solely occuring remotely. The data collection was achieved through a qualitative approach consisting of participant observations and semi-structured interviews. The results of this research proved that microinteractions are used frequently within digital meetings in Microsoft Teams, but in different contexts and in different constellations. The results also identified that microinteractions, which hold the right conditions, can streamline workflows in certain scenarios. This study concluded in interesting data that answered the research questions but also opened up for further research due to the topic being of a novel field and in a special time, in this case referring to the pandemic and Covid-19.

In an increasingly digitised world, the pedagogy of education is at risk of being dictated by technological advancement. As fragments of teaching practice left over from previous curricula are adapted and amalgamated into new curricula, the educational landscape becomes a sea of learning terminologies used interchangeably. In many cases these terminologies are then disconnected from an underlying understanding of what learning is and how the best possible form and quality of learning can be brought about. Two recent technological advancements in the field of education is Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) and the MakerSpace movement. However, these fields need to be engaged with as avenues of investigation in the pursuit of the highest possible learning quality outcome required by a world that is super-complex. Through comprehensive literature research, the researcher first presented an in-depth argument detailing what learning is, what the highest quality of learning is and how this learning quality can be measured. The literature revealed a particular professional practice of “facilitating lifelong authentic learning” of which the sole purpose is achieving exactly that. In this mixed method research project, an attempt was made to re-connect the technological advancement of online learning with the theoretical framework of the learning process as laid down by Vygotsky, particularly through the Zone of Proximal Development. Within the context of a MakerSpace subject, the researcher attempted to determine how the identified practice of facilitating lifelong authentic learning would ensure the increase in the quality of learning in online groups where MakerSpace learners were required to resolve a real-life challenge. An experiment then followed where a professional facilitator of learning was present in the experimental groups, while the control groups attempted to resolve the challenge un-facilitated. A comparison of the analysis of chat transcriptions indicated that on average the quality of learning was higher in facilitated groups. Interview data collected after the experiment shed light on this finding and suggested that the quality of learning in an online group increases when a facilitator of learning increases the level of difficulty of the real-life challenge as perceived by the group’s dominant participant (the person who contributes the most to the group dialogue). This not only indicated the value of Facilitating Learning in an online learning evnvironment, but also highlighted its necessity in terms of improving the quality of the learning. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2021. / Humanities Education / PhD / Unrestricted