// HACKER NEWS — CYBERSECURITY
Microsoft tried to ban "Microslop", and six months later it has given up
In March, Windows Latest was the first to notice that Microsoft’s official Copilot Discord server was blocking messages containing “Microslop.” Anyone who tried to post it got a moderation warning, and people quickly started testing variations like “Microsl0p” to slip past the filter. Naturally, the situation escalated until Microsoft locked down parts of the server for good.
Six months later, I checked the same Copilot Discord again and found that “Microslop” is no longer being blocked. Users were openly posting the word in the general channel, and search turns up over 200 results for it going back weeks.
Obviously, Microsoft didn’t say anything about lifting the ban. People just started using the word again, and we found that whatever was blocking the word no longer appears to be active. So, what happened to the Microsoft that once seemed bothered enough by a nickname that they themselves invited?
The word “emerged” in late 2025 or early 2026 out of frustration with Microsoft’s aggressive AI push across Windows 11, spreading fast enough that someone built a browser extension that renamed Microsoft to Microslop across every webpage. Of course, the issue was that Copilot was showing up everywhere whether anyone asked for it or not.
By March, Windows Latest found the word filtered in the official Copilot Discord, with messages containing it getting blocked automatically. Users found variants that dodged the filter; some accounts got restricted, and Microsoft locked down the server.
Microsoft later told Windows Latest that the filtering was a temporary anti-spam measure and not a permanent policy targeting the word, but the damage was already done by then.
The hostility towards Copilot predates the Discord filter by months. In November 2025, Windows chief Pavan Davuluri had to lock replies on an X post about Windows becoming an “agentic OS” after it drew nothing but negative responses, with users accusing Microsoft of chasing AI while ignoring basic Windows problems.
I spend an unreasonable amount of time on X, Reddit, and Windows communities looking for bugs, complaints, and breaking stories. Compared with earlier this year, I am seeing “Microslop” much less often, though Redmond has hardly become universally liked. The criticism is still very much there, but the conversation feels less dominated by the AI backlash that made the nickname so widespread.
I think the reason is pretty palpable too. Microsoft changed course. Windows chief Pavan Davuluri wrote in a March 20 quality announcement, “You will see us be more intentional about how and where Copilot integrates across Windows, focusing on experiences that are genuinely useful and well-crafted. As part of this, we are reducing unnecessary Copilot entry points, starting with apps like Snipping Tool, Photos, Widgets, and Notepad.”
And that landmark announcement was not a mere promise. To my surprise, Microsoft followed through, pulling the Copilot button from Snipping Tool completely and quietly renaming it to “Writing tools” in Notepad for everyone, not just Insiders.