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#31
I think that the most distinguished difference between spying and telemetry is totally forgotten in this discussion.
Spying your PC usage and your activities would mean someone wanting to know all about you and in worst case, use that information to either harm you or gain profits.
Windows telemetry is not doing that. Microsoft really is not interested in your person; they do not even want to know who you are. Instead, telemetry data is used to offer you better and more accurate search results, simply to make your Windows user experience more targeted, to do and show what your earlier behaviour shows you are interested in.
Allowing telemetry data to be collected, Windows is able to adjust it to your needs. Personally I could not even think disabling telemetry; I like the fact that the more I use Windows, the better it learns to know me and my habits. Being a keen Cortana user, I must say I really like how day by day Cortana is helping me by showing more and more relevant content when I search something, just to mention one example.
Your privacy is in no way threatened by letting Windows to collect telemetry data. The collected data is not used to spy on you, it is not sold to third parties, it is not even used to identify you in order to keep records of you.
A weird and somehow sadly funny thing is that most of those users complaining about Windows telemetry willingly let Google do even more on their Android phones, or Apple do the same on their iPads and iPhones. To fully utilize those devices you need a Google or Apple ID.
A piece of advice to all you geeks going extra miles to prevent Windows telemetry: Stop using Windows. Get an iMac, iPad or Android device, or replace Windows on your computers with a Linux distro of your choice. My point: throw away your tinfoil hat and get a baseball cap instead.
Kari
Last edited by Kari; 08 May 2018 at 07:48. Reason: Fixed the worst typos
Kari, the telemetry has value to Microsoft, and if it helps them improve Windows, fine. But it's really a smokescreen for collecting lots more.
The barn door is open. Your data is being seized. You are being watched.
Complete BS!
TipIf you are concerned about Microsoft collecting telemetry data to be able to personalize your Windows user experience, here's the steps required to make it completely impossible. List is quite short and easy to understand:
1.) Never connect to Internet
-- OR --
2.) Use Mac instead (of course, then you would need to disable Internet connection to disable Apple for "spying on you")
Kari
Hahhah!
I have enabled ALL telemetry on ALL my Windows devices. I have even Enabled ALL telemetry for ALL Microsoft applications I use on my Android devices.
I have done all this only because I know what the data is used for and how. Only thing the data does on MS servers, is to improve MY Windows/Microsoft experience and helps Microsoft fix possible bugs or performance issues my devices might have. It's in every Windows users best interest to let Microsoft collect as much telemetry as possible so they can keep improving their products.
How we ignorantly compare Facebook to Microsoft, on purpose "forgetting" to mention how different these companies are and how different reasons they have to collect any data...
Twisting and misusing the details just to make them support invalid facts is in my books about the same as lying.
Anyway, one good example of how telemetry is used to make our Windows usage better and safer is how Microsoft used and will use it to fight malware. Our fellow member @EdTittel wrote about that on Search Enterprise Desktop some time ago: MS Foils Coin Mining Compelling Telemetry Case - Windows Enterprise Desktop
Kari