Wiping data from Outlook web access??

[Xpain]

This is weird, never really heard of this. It seems like there's an option in Outlook web access where you can wipe all data from your device. At first I thought that it might delete only the emails or something but after doing some "googling", I'm reading it actually wipes out all data in your phone. How's this possible?
Those of you curious about it, if you have corporate email (work or school) through outlook web access, go to it (in your PC), check "options" upper right corner, then "mobile device" on the left column. That will take you to a screen that shows the device/s synced with your account and the wiping options (among other options) I was referring to. I copy pasted below the text of of the page I'm talking about. See below:

Mobile Devices

Manage your mobile devices here.
You can remove devices that you are no longer using. If you forget your device password, you can access it here. If you lose your phone or mobile device, you can initiate a remote device wipe to protect your information.
To add a new device, begin a partnership with Microsoft Exchange from the device and it will appear in the list below.

\/these below are clickable options on that page\/
Remove Device from List...
Wipe All Data from Device...
Display Recovery Password
Retrieve Log...

 

[takeshi]

How's this possible?

It's a security feature. Mobile devices get lost all the time. You can't guarantee retrieval of the device so wiping it is the next best thing. In many cases, the data is worth more than the device itself.

Those of you curious about it, if you have corporate email (work or school) through outlook web access, go to it (in your PC), check "options" upper right corner, then "mobile device" on the left column. That will take you to a screen that shows the device/s synced with your account and the wiping options (among other options)

Must depend on the specific Exchange environment. Options isn't at the upper right and there's no Mobile Device section for me. Checked both work and personal hosted Exchange.