Microsoft Price Increase & Cyber Scams

Microsoft 365 Price Increase

Starting 1st April, 2025, Microsoft is increasing its pricing on select subscriptions. If you have an annual commitment but pay monthly, Microsoft will apply a 5% price increase on the renewal/anniversary date of the license.

Currently, if you purchase an annual commitment and pay monthly you get a 20% discount compared to the month-to-month subscriptions with no annual commitment, after 1st April the difference will be a 15% discount once your annual commitment period has ended.

Who is affected?

  • Customers with an annual subscription that are paid on a monthly basis.
  • If you are on an annual commitment with month-to-month payments then you won’t be affected till your annual commitment term has expired, please get in touch with us to find out when that is.

    Who is not affected?

    • Customers with a month-to-month subscription paid monthly (currently paying 20% more).

    How to Avoid the Price Increase if You are Affected

    • Switch to Annual Upfront Payments: Annual subscriptions paid upfront in full for the whole year from the renewal date will retain the 20% discount (Please contact us to find out your renewal date).

      Price increase for Microsoft products:

      • Microsoft Teams Phone Standard – 25%
      • Power BI Pro – 40%
      • Power BI Premium Per User – 20%

      Why is the New Zealand price not known yet?

      Pricing is set to rise by 20% – 40%. Although we have updates for US pricing, we cannot provide precise figures yet for NZ due to exchange rate variations, local pricing strategies, and rounding adjustments.

      This is Microsoft’s first price increase on Teams Phone and Power BI products since they launched Teams Phone in 2017 and Power BI in 2015. According to Microsoft, the new pricing reflects the collective value added to these products over the past 8-10 years.

      windows10 end of life

      If you have any questions about your Microsoft subscription, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We are happy to help.

      Contact us

      Cyber Scams Target Small to Medium Sized Businesses

      Millions of dollars are stolen from New Zealanders every year from common cyber attacks. The latest Cyber Threat Report from the New Zealand National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) outlined statistics highlighting the impact Cyber crimes have particularly on small to medium businesses. They have stated, “Organisations that experience cyber incidents can lose important data or the use of systems, sometimes irretrievably, as well as experiencing diminished public or customer trust”.

      • Most of the incidents recorded by NCSC primarily affected small to medium businesses.
      • 6,779 incidents were handled through the NCSC’s general incident triage process. Out of these incidents, 50% were phishing and credential-harvesting followed by 30% scam and fraud.
      windows10 end of life

      How Does This Affect You?

      Recognise and Avoid Phishing Attacks. Phishing attacks fail if you successfully don’t take the bait. You can do this by avoiding the temptation to click on attachments or links in email messages unless you are 100% certain who the email is coming from.

      What To Look Out For?

      • Suspicious Emails & Messages – Look for generic greetings, poor grammar, and unexpected attachments or links.
      • Urgency & Threats – Phishers often create a sense of urgency, claiming your account will be locked or compromised if you don’t act immediately.
      • Spoofed Sender Addresses – Scammers can fake email addresses to appear legitimate. If you are unsure, double-check by contacting the company directly.

      Hackers sign in, they don’t break in.

      Many people imagine hackers as cybercriminals using complex code to “break into” systems. Yet, in reality, most successful attacks don’t involve breaking through firewalls – they involve signing in with stolen or weak credentials.

      Five Ways Hackers Gain Access 👿

      • Phishing attacks – Tricking users into revealing passwords through fake emails, websites, or messages.
      • Credential stuffing – Using leaked passwords from data breaches to access multiple accounts (because people reuse passwords).
      • Brute force attacks – Trying common or weak passwords until one works.
      • Social engineering – Manipulating employees into handing over login details or access.
      • Malware & keyloggers – Installing malicious software to capture keystrokes and steal passwords.

      Five Ways to Keep Hackers Out 🔒

      • Use strong, unique passwords – Avoid using the same password across multiple accounts.
      • Enable MFA – Even if hackers steal your password, they won’t get in without a second authentication step.
      • Be Wary of Phishing Scams – Always verify unexpected login requests or password reset emails.
      • Monitor for Unusual Logins – Set up alerts for logins from new locations or devices.
      • Limit Access – Employees should only have access to what they need. Reduce admin privileges where possible.

      Hackers don’t always need to “hack” in the traditional sense – they just need a valid username and password.

      Contact the team at VisionLab if you need help strengthening your cyber security posture.

      Contact us