SAN FRANCISCO: Microsoft's new Windows 10
system offers more personalization than before,
but it also collects more data than people might
be used to on PCs, from contacts and
appointments to their physical location and even
Wi-Fi passwords.
. . The information is used by Cortana, Microsoft's
voice-activated digital assistant, and other new
features that try to be helpful by remembering a
user's likes and habits. Apple and Google have
developed similar services for smartphones in
recent years. Microsoft's new features are a big
part of its strategy to make Windows more
relevant in a world where people use multiple
devices throughout the day.
. . Most of these features get turned on when you
set up Windows 10 with the 'Get going fast'
option. But you can take back control and
disable features in the settings. Here are some
examples:
. . Wi-Fi worries
. A feature called Wi-Fi Sense promises to make
it easy for users and their friends to connect
with new Wi-Fi networks. It lets Windows 10
computers log in automatically to known
networks, so your friends don't have to ask for
the password when they visit.
. . Despite some initial reports, Wi-Fi Sense doesn't
hand over your password to all your friends.
Instead it stores your password online in an
encrypted form. It then provides that encrypted
code to your friend's Windows 10 device so it
can automatically log into your network. Your
friends never actually see the password, and
Microsoft says your friends won't get access to
other computers or files on the network.
. . Even so, critics say the feature shares too
freely, as you can't choose which friends to
share with -- only with your full list of friends or
contacts on Facebook, Outlook.com or Skype.
To disable this, open the 'Settings' menu in
Windows 10, select 'Network & Internet' and
click on ``Manage Wi-Fi Settings.'' You can
uncheck groups you don't want to share with.
You can also choose not to share access to a
particular network when you log in for the first
time; just uncheck the box next to 'Share
network with my contacts.'
. . But if you let friends manually log into your
network by giving them your password, be
aware they might be able to share the password
via Wi-Fi Sense with their friends. You can ask
them not to, or completely block Wi-Fi Sense by
changing your Wi-Fi network's name to include
the underscore followed by these characters:
Optout.
. . Cortana knows you
. Many people are used to voice-activated
services like Apple's Siri or 'OK Google' on
smartphones and tablets. Windows 10 brings
Microsoft's digital assistant, Cortana, to
desktops and laptops. Cortana can answer
questions, remind you of appointments and even
recommend nearby restaurants. But to do that,
Cortana uploads and saves information about
your web browsing, search queries and location,
as well as some details from your messages,
contacts and calendar.
. . Microsoft says it doesn't use the Cortana
personalization to target ads. Nor will it use your
emails, chats or personal files for advertising.
But it does tailor ads to websites visited with its
Edge browser and queries made on its Bing
search engine, including queries through
Cortana. (Google's browser and search engine
do this, too.)
. . You can review what Cortana knows about you:
Click on the search field in the lower left of your
screen, then click the 'Notebook' icon and select
'About Me' to edit or delete individual items. If
you want to turn Cortana off, open 'Notebook,'
click on 'Settings' and toggle Cortana to 'Off'.
That clears information stored on the device, but
not the data uploaded to Microsoft's servers. To
get to that, open 'Notebook;, choose 'Settings'
and click 'Manage what Cortana knows about
me in the cloud'.
. . More privacy settings
. Anyone concerned about privacy should take a
run through the 'Privacy' section of the Windows
10 'Settings' menu. This is different from the
'Settings' menu for Cortana. You find it by
clicking on the Windows icon in the lower left of
your screen.
. . Windows 10 assigns each user on each device a
unique 'advertising ID', which lets app
developers track how each person uses the
device and apps. If that bothers you, you'll find
the button to turn it off by going to 'Settings' and
opening the 'Privacy' section. You might have to
hit the back arrow at the top left if you're
already in another section. Click on 'General' in
the left-hand column to turn off advertising ID.
You might still get ads, but they won't be
tailored to you.
. . Similarly, open 'Privacy' and click on 'Location'
to turn off location-tracking or clear the history
of where you've traveled with your laptop, tablet
or Windows phone.
. . Another heading under 'Privacy' has the
innocuous title of 'Other devices'. That's where
you can turn off the ability to 'Sync with
devices'. That feature lets apps on your device
share information with things like store-tracking
beacons, which send you ads as you walk
nearby. If that sounds creepy, turn it off.
. . Some critics complain that Microsoft hasn't
been more up front about all the ways Windows
10 collects user information. But you can find
most of them by scrolling through the nooks and
crannies of the 'Settings' menu. That's a good
thing to do with any new software program or
internet service. It's also good to go back there
from time to time to make sure the settings
match your comfort level.
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