How to Protect Your Privacy in Windows
Like many tech companies, Microsoft gathers certain information about you—what you do in Windows and on the web, how and where you use your devices, and what type of content and data you access, for example.
Tech companies always say they're collecting such information to provide a more customized and personalized experience for you. Yes, some type of data collection is necessary if you want to take full advantage of certain Windows features. But companies also monetize your data for advertising purposes. The good news is that as a Microsoft user, you have a fair amount of control over your own privacy.
You can review and control your privacy settings directly in Windows 10 and 11 and remove collected data through Microsoft's online Privacy Dashboard. The process can be challenging as you face an array of privacy settings and options to view and manage, but Microsoft does provide some help along the way. Overall, it's a process worth running to ensure that you safeguard your own privacy as much as possible. Let's check it out.
The first time you encounter privacy settings is when you set up or reset Windows. At some point, you'll see a screen for Choose privacy settings for your device with the following features: Location, Find my device, Diagnostic data, Inking & typing, Tailored experiences, and Advertising ID. In Windows 10, the screen is laid out horizontally so you can quickly and easily review the different settings.
In Windows 11, the screen is laid out vertically with a graphic image unnecessarily taking up space on the left side, so you have to scroll down to see all the settings.
By default, each setting is enabled, though you can disable any of them with a click. To learn more about each setting and how to
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