Exactly. Running fedora desktop and I am thinking why the move does.not do more poeple. The only Microsoft junk I am using is the corporation laptop and that I am sure wont get this function.
Glad I switched from PC to Mac back in 2022 because I was pissed Microsoft was forcing me to upgrade hardware to switch to Windows 11 which I didn’t want. Apple to me is more private and will be more thoughtful with their AI tools to expand user functionality. Screw Microsoft. This is a user that had used PCs since the late 1980s…
I don’t even care if it’s opt-in. I don’t want dormant malware on my PC either.
To be clear. I actually like Windows 11. I don’t care about the general telemetry, though I disabled the typing data crap. Most of the things in the last few months about ads in Windows, about blocking apps, etc have been overblown and aren’t actually big problems in isolation. Even this is a little overblown right now as it requires an NPU which the vast majority of systems don’t have. But, this is just so tone-deaf and an obviously terrible idea that it needs to be put down hard.
Most of the things in the last few months about ads in Windows, about blocking apps, etc have been overblown and aren’t actually big problems in isolation.
Any telemetry sent without a very clearly informed opt in is malicious. Any ad in an OS is malicious. There is no valid justification for either.
It’s also important to remember that Microsoft has no monetary incentive to force people to use Windows Recall.
With that in mind, there would be no reason for Microsoft to automatically enable Windows Recall in an update down the line. If it does happen, the user will be able to instantly tell thanks to that that visual indicator and turn it off again.
This article is nothing but propaganda. There is huge monetary incentive to force people to use Windows Recall and collect their data, and Microsoft routinely uses Windows Update to enable data collection. They began that practice years ago on Windows 7. It’s a ridiculously simple matter for MS to disable the visual indicator and force This Week’s Plan on their users to monetize their data.
Windows Central pretends to be critical of plans to enable a feature that can be made into malware by Microsoft in a couple of minutes, but then back peddles and says it can’t be done (utter BS) and if it could be, it wouldn’t be that bad.
Even if the database remains local only forever, which I don’t believe for a second, the computer will eventually make hyperspecific requests for ads based on the spying.
Only data that is not stored cannot fall victim to attackers. It does not matter whether it is a ‘nigerian prince’, Microsoft or some agency. Even if you completly trust whatever entity with your data right now, they may become problematic in the future.
This is why a low profile is a crucial component of OPsec.
Recall is objectively stupid, even if Microsoft only had their users best interest in mind. And they don’t.
“Haha windows 10 EOL is soon and no your computer cannot upgrade 😏”
Followed by the
“We’re thinking about… no? Okay well anyways, we’re gonna shove ads into the UX, even after backpedaling after backlash”
Then the
“Listen the security situation is p bad and we’re not too sure what to do about it. Lots of internal accts have been compromised. Probably yours too, we don’t really know. Shhh, we got big AI news soon.”
And lastly the
“Unveiling, the biggest security nightmare tool in the history of connected devices. From the writers of Total Recall and the masterminds behind Ads in your OS comes: Recall!”
I don’t care what windows does to rectify this. My parents next machines are either Linux or Chromebooks.
If windows 12 isn’t FOSS, Microsoft can pound sand.
I know it’s WindowsCentral but the article has some pretty naive takes. Given the propensity of threat actors to target Windows due to its market share it’s impossible to not see a system that records user activity as a huge treasure trove for both malware and hackers.
It also doesn’t mention that Microsoft claimed that it would be impossible to exfiltrate Recall data and of course researchers found it not only possible but trivial, with the data lacking even basic protections. Assurances that there are mechanisms to prevent Recall from secretly monitoring you mean nothing when prior assurances about safety have been found to be paper thin at best.
Further it ignores that telemetry gathered by Windows has dramatically increased in the last several years with methods to disable it being eliminated or undone by OS updates. Microsoft is hungry for user data and it would be absurdly naive to think that Recall won’t be a tool they use to gain more of it. If not now, then definitely later.
The author does point out that Recall has been weirdly under wraps, avoiding the usual test bed for new feature rollout. Microsoft has been acting shady about the feature and then the feature itself does shady things (like record PII, credit card data, etc.), of course users are going to think the worst. At this point it’s a survival tactic.
Microsoft doesn’t have trust issues because of bad PR or a few missteps. Microsoft has trust issues because they have violated user trust repeatedly for decades. They have done nothing to make users feel like they care at all about keeping Windows secure and safe and they clearly have no regard for user privacy. This only question is whether this backlash will do anything to make Microsoft reconsider the way it treats its users. I predict they will learn all the wrong lessons from this.
There is no way I’m going to use a machine where they can turn on something remotely through a update or some other fashion. I probably won’t even have a 11 vm at home now. I’ll keep the 10 vm for its minor uses until it can no longer do the few things I use it for but that is it for me. Remove that garbage or lose more of us macroshaft.
It boggles the mind this isn’t an external download you have to specifically navigate to their website to download and install. The fact it is soon to be on Win 11 systems, just a toggle away, is terrifying. Particularly since lots of people handle your personal data, while data collectors like this are on their machines (and many of those machines will have the collector turned on).
I wish, now have a i9-14900KF, so guessing no more Windows 10 anymore. Planning to make a Linux partition, but frustrating the way that Windows tries so adamantly to take boot priority.
It’s not very intuitive but it isn’t so bad once you’re familiar; you can take a look at this whenever’s convenient for you.
When you boot the system, you should briefly see your BIOS splash screen, along with the key combo to get into your BIOS setup menu. Let us know which mainboard vendor you have and we may be able to tell you in advance (For Asus, it’s usually F2, for Gigabyte its the Delete key, for MSI it might be F12 etc). I just mash the specified key when prompted until I’m in.
There’s usually also a key that you can hit to select a temporary boot device (I.e. I can hit F12 on my gigabyte board to select any OS detected by the BIOS, not just boot into the top entry).
Once you’re in, have a look for the ‘Boot’ section. You should have the capability to define your boot order. These entries can consist of traditional disks connected via SATA/SCSI/m.2, USB drives, network locations etc.
You can arrange this boot order however you like.
I would also recommended temporarily disconnecting any existing drives when installing an OS on your system (e.g.: Windows attempts to store its bootloader on SATA 0 by default, even if the OS isn’t destined for that drive).
registry switch that’ll mysteriously reset itself. we’ve had this shit with countless windows configurations at work that our IT guy has to battle with on the regular.
I’ve had so many people jump down my throat for listing some of the many obviously fucked things Microsoft did on my PC just over the life of Windows 10. (And not that it should matter, but I even paid for Pro).
I turned all their various advertising and spying “features” off through legitimate settings, group policies, whatever, and the list of things that reverted themselves over time was insane.
And not that it should matter, but I even paid for Pro
It should matter though. If MS wants to give away Windows for free, then users should expect compromised privacy. But it’s not. They charge hundreds for it.
If Windows made a paid version that was private and secure, and that the user was in control of, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
If they were giving away Windows for free, their behavior would still be unforgivable.
There is no scenario where any operating system including spyware or ads can ever theoretically be acceptable behavior. Any person who contributes in any way to that happening belongs in a prison cell.
If you can’t support providing something for free via a mechanism that isn’t pure and unadulterated evil, then don’t do it for free. “We have to be monsters to make money” is not a valid position.
I understand you have qualms with Linux, and that’s plenty fine, but when the large majority of servers and smartphones around the world run it, you can’t say that no one uses it.
Yeah dude, there’s nothing they can do to fix this. They have eroded the trust of their users for decades. It will take them decades to get it back, if they actually tried.
Also it took hackers days to find vulnerabilities. Which is a massive security concern.
Can anyone give me examples of times Windows has done this in the past? I mean, I feel like this is true, but I legit can’t think of anything that matches this.
One Drive reinstalled and turned back on on my personal & work computer multiple times.
AI Co-pilot added to my machine and enabled “so you can start using it now!” with an obtrusive pinned shortcut on my start bar, to both of the same machines but at different time intervals. Uninstalling is virtually impossible and requires registry mods to 'remove" it. Not even a powers he’ll command can remove it.
windowscentral.com
Hot