How to prevent attendees from forwarding Outlook meeting?

Author Kelly Last modified 2025-04-10

In some cases, you may want to prevent meeting attendees from forwarding your meeting in Outlook, for the sake of privacy, confidentiality, or other purposes. Here, in this article I will introduce two solutions for you:

Prevent attendees from forwarding Outlook meeting with VBA
Prevent attendees from forwarding meeting with designing form

Prevent attendees from forwarding Outlook meeting with VBA

This method will guide you to add "Disable Forwarding" and "Enable Forwarding" buttons on the Ribbon in the Meeting window by VBA, and then you can prevent attendees from forwarding your meeting by the "Disable Forwarding" button. Please do as follows:

1. Press "Alt" + "F11" keys to open the Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications window.

2. Click "Insert" > "Module", and paste below VBA code into the new Module window.

VBA: Prevent attendees from forwarding meeting

Sub ItemDisableForwarding()
  Dim xCurrentItem As Object
  Set xCurrentItem = Outlook.ActiveInspector.CurrentItem
  xCurrentItem.Actions("Forward").Enabled = False
  MsgBox "Forwarding current meeting has been disabled. Any meeting attendee is prevented from forwarding this meeting."
End Sub

Sub ItemEnableForwarding()
  Dim xCurrentItem As Object
  Set xCurrentItem = ActiveInspector.CurrentItem
  xCurrentItem.Actions("Forward").Enabled = True
  MsgBox "Forwarding current meeting has been enabled."
End Sub

3. Save the VBA code, and close the Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications window.

4. Open a calendar folder, and click "Home" > "New Meeting" to create a new meeting.

5. Click "File" > "Options" to open the Outlook Options dialog box.

6. In the Outlook Options dialog box, click "Customize Ribbon" in the left bar, click to highlight "Appointment" in the right box, and click the "New Group" button. See screenshot:

the step of preventing attendees from forwarding Outlook meeting using vba

7. Now a new group is added under "Appointment" tab. Click the "Rename" button, type a new name for it, and click the "OK" button in the Rename dialog box. See screenshot:

8. Go ahead to (1) select "Macros" from the "Choose commands from" drop-down list, (2) select "Project1.ItemDisableForwarding" in the left box, and (3) click the "Add" button.

9. Now the selected command is added to the right box. Keep it selected, and: (1) click the "Rename" button, (2) in the Rename dialog box, specify an icon for the command, (3) type a new name for it, and finally (4) click the "OK" button. See screenshot:

10. Repeat above Step 8-9 to add the other "Project1.ItemEnableForwarding" to the right box, and click the "OK" button in the Outlook Options dialog box.

Now you return to the Meeting window, and you will see the two commands have been added under the "Meeting" tab. See screenshot:

11. Click "Meeting" > "Disable Forwarding", and then click the "OK" button in the popping out dialog box. See screenshot:

12. Add meeting elements as you need, and click the "Send" button to send it.

If attendees try to forward this meeting by "Meeting" > "Forward" in their Outlook, a dialog box will come out to prevent the forwarding action.

Notes:
(1) This method won’t prevent attendees from forwarding the meeting as iCalendar attachment.
(2) This method works well for Exchange account.

Prevent attendees from forwarding meeting with designing form

Actually, you can modify the meeting form and disable the Forward feature in it. All meetings created based on this form will not allow forwarding in Outlook.

1. Open a calendar folder, and click "Home" > "New Meeting" to create a new meeting.

2. In the Meeting window, click "File" > "Options".

3. In the Outlook Options dialog box, click "Customize Ribbon" on the left bar, check "Developer" in the right box, and click the "OK" button. See screenshot:

the step of preventing attendees from forwarding Outlook meeting using designing form

4. Now return to the Meeting window, and click "Developer" > "Design This Form". See screenshot:

5. Enable the "(Actions)" tab, and double click the "Forward" row to open its "Form Action Properties" dialog box.

6. In the Form Action Properties dialog box, uncheck the "Enable" option, and click the "OK" button. See screenshot:

7. Click "Developer" > "Run This Form". See screenshot:

8. Now a new meeting is created based on the modified meeting form. Add meeting elements as you need, and click the "Send" button.

Notes:
(1) If you need to apply this modified meeting form frequently, it’s recommended to save it by clicking "Developer" > "Publish" > "Publish Form".
(2) All meetings created based on the modified meeting form will not allow attendees to forward. However, attendees can still forward the meeting as an iCalendar attachment.
(3) This method works well for Exchange account.

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