Is it possible for Admins to get notification when a user in the tenant installs a third-party app in Teams?

Question

I am being asked to determine if it is possible to receive a notification when a user attempts to install a third-party app in Teams.

I got some conflicting information in my search.

Is it possible to get notifications when a user tries to install a third-party app, or is it recommended to just block it and force users to contact admins to install?

Answer 1

Hi @Scott Kasai,

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A Forum.

According to Manage your apps in the Microsoft Teams admin center - Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn, Automatic email notifications to admins for every app install isn't a built-in feature. Microsoft Teams doesn’t send admins an email each time a user installs a third‑party app. There is a few possible options you can consider ensuring protection to your organization:

1. Block or allow apps centrally (including “only allow specific apps”). Users can also request approval for blocked apps, and admins see those requests in the Teams admin center. 
2. Log every app install event (e.g., AppInstalled) in the Microsoft Purview audit log and optionally create alerts so admins get notified when someone installs an app. 
3. If you use Microsoft Entra ID’s Admin Consent workflow, users can email a request to reviewers when an application needs tenant‑wide consent; reviewers get email notifications. (This is for app permissions/consent, not the Teams store itself, but many orgs combine both for tighter control.)

In short, you can allow only a curated list of trusted apps through app‑centric management, enable user requests for other apps to monitor demand, and activate audit alerts for AppInstalled events to quickly detect and investigate installs. You can try 2 following path to set up your protection:

 Path 1: Strict: Block third‑party apps, let users request

1. Open: https://admin.teams.microsoft.com
2. Click: Teams apps ➜ Manage apps.

3. Open: Org‑wide app settings ➜ Set Third‑party apps to off (or per‑app “No one”). 

4. Tell users: “If you need an app, click Request approval in the Teams store.”
5. Review requests: In Manage apps, check Requests by users; open an app’s User requests tab to see who asked. Allow or ignore. 

You can find more information about Users Requests via this document: User requests for admins - Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn

Path 2: Allow but get notified (audit/alerts)

1. Turn on auditing: In Microsoft Purview ➜ Audit ➜ make sure auditing is On. 
2. Search installs: In Audit, search Activities = Installed app (Teams), Operation = AppInstalled. Run a search to confirm events appear. 
3. Create an alert policy (Defender or Purview): “When AppInstalled occurs, send email to IT Admins.” Tune scope (users/groups) to reduce noise. 

Please note that there currently a change following Microsoft 365 roadmap item 151829 in Teams Admin Center, the guide above based on the newest update, but if your tenant is still under permission policies management, please feel free to inform me so that we can work from there.

You can learn about the migration here: App centric management to manage user access to Teams apps - Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn

 

I hope this information is helpful. Please follow these steps and let me know if it works for you. If not, we can work together to resolve this.  

Thank you for your patience and your understanding. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.  

I'm looking forward to your reply.  

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Answer 2

In Microsoft Teams, admins do not receive automatic notifications when a user installs a third-party app. However, users can request that an admin allow apps that are not available to them. Admins receive notifications for these requests and can then choose to allow the app. Therefore, while it is not possible to get notifications for every installation attempt, you can manage app installations by blocking third-party apps and requiring users to contact admins for installation.

Blocking third-party apps can be a recommended approach to maintain control over app usage within your organization. This way, you can ensure that only approved apps are used, and users must reach out to admins for any additional app needs.

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References:

• Install apps or let users install apps and uninstall apps
• Allow or block apps