Earlier this week a Voat thread started something. It detailed extensive Windows 10 background telemetry making thousands of connections every hour toMicrosoft MSFT -8.40% servers. It did this with every accessible tracking option disabled and even a third party telemetry blocker installed. I took this data to Microsoft and it declined to comment, but now the company has had a change of heart.
Contacting me again a Microsoft spokesperson explained the company now wanted to speak about the issue. In short: Microsoft is taking action. It has decided to release updates “later this year” which will enable users to fully control all background telemetry and data tracking and, if desired, disable it completely. Microsoft also asked me to stress that disabling these background operations is something it would “strongly recommend against”.
So should we get out our party hats and cheer? Yes and no.
The big win here is a victory for choice. It is a move which gives users complete control over what their operating system does in the background – for better or worse – and that openness is to be applauded. So too is the company’s decision to go back and rethink its stance.
Windows 10 has great potential, but also aggressive update and extensive telemetry reporting. Will a U-turn on the latter also lead to changes with the former? It’s perhaps optimistic. Image credit: Microsoft
But it is also important to put this decision in full context. Not all background telemetry and data sharing is bad, far from it. This so called ‘phone home’ behaviour (conspiracy theories aside) is primarily about monitoring the health of your operating system and providing Microsoft with anonymised real time data to make ongoing improvements. I fully recognise Microsoft’s strong recommendation against disabling all of it.
Yet ‘No’ must mean No. As it stands giving users what appear to be pages of detailed telemetry control options only for them to find out numerous telemetry functions will still continue at pace does nothing to build confidence and trust in an operating system. This is especially true for many users who are still adjusting to Windows 10’s vise-like control over updates which comes as part of Microsoft’s pledge to move Windows to a SaaS (software as a service) model.
Other important takeaways from Microsoft’s telemetry U-turn? While it may change in future, for now full control over telemetry is currently only being brought to Windows 10 Enterprise. This means users of Windows 10 Home and Pro, typically consumers and small businesses respectively, will still need to cede control. Whether you like it or not, Microsoft spells this out in the Windows 10 EULA – its house, its rules.
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