Ever since Windows 10 launched, many have raised concerns in regards to their privacy and about how Microsoft collects personal and user information. Today, Microsoft has announced the launch of a new Privacy Dashboard, and is noting that they have recommitted themselves to your privacy with the Windows 10 Creators update.
According to Microsoft, trust is a core pillar of the “more personal computing” vision. So, based on feedback, Microsoft has decided to launch two new experiences to help ensure that you’re you are in control of your privacy, and that you have a greater understanding of how your data is collected. The software giant explains:
First, today we’re launching a new web-based privacy dashboard so you can see and control your activity data from Microsoft including location, search, browsing, and Cortana Notebook data across multiple Microsoft services. Second, we’re introducing in Windows 10 a new privacy set up experience, simplifying Diagnostic data levels and further reducing the data collected at the Basic level
The second part of the initiative are simplified privacy settings, a new set up experience for choosing privacy settings, simplified diagnostic data collection and a reduction of the data collected at the Basic level of privacy settings. The company explains each level of changes:
This experience, which replaces previous Express Settings, will look slightly different depending on the version of Windows you are using. If you are moving from Windows 7 or Windows 8, or doing a fresh install of Windows 10, the new set up experience will clearly show you simple but important settings and you will need to choose your settings before you can move forward with setup. If you are already using Windows 10, we will use notifications to prompt you to choose your privacy settings. We’ll introduce this process in an upcoming Windows Insider build soon.
We’ve simplified our Diagnostic data collection from three levels to two: Basic and Full. If you previously selected the Enhanced level, you’ll have the option to choose Basic or Full with the Creators Update.
We’ve further reduced the data collected at the Basic level. This includes data that is vital to the operation of Windows. We use this data to help keep Windows and apps secure, up-to-date, and running properly when you let Microsoft know the capabilities of your device, what is installed, and whether Windows is operating correctly. This option also includes basic error reporting back to Microsoft.
As has been standard, these changes are first being introduced in a Windows Insider build soon and will be rolled out to everyone when the Windows 10 Creators Update becomes available. Let us know what you think of these changes by dropping us a comment below!
