Microsoft Turns Its ‘Recall’ Feature Into An ‘Opt-In’ Endeavor After Privacy Concerns

After the launch of Microsoft’s ‘Copilot+ PCs’ that was backed up by Snapdragon processors, we saw the company debut another rollout dubbed Recall.

This endeavor was designed to enable users to look for anything and everything that was done via machines. After such privacy issues are on the rise, we’re now seeing the software giant announce how Recall would only be present as an opt-in option.

The feature first gained a lot of momentum when it was working alongside the wave of Snapdragon with X Plus laptops. It was revealed how users would be allowed to look for anything via the option on their PCs.

For those who might not be aware, it functioned with the help of screenshots that were made in a few seconds. This enabled AI to be searched via the screenshots so that users would get exactly what they were in search of quickly.

While most of it got done through devices seen online, experts and critics spoke about how it brought about major privacy implications. This had to do with capturing and storing data belonging to users.

But the tech giant seems to be backtracking on whatever claims it generated in the past. The announcement had to do with the option working as an option.

Seeing Microsoft’s default behavior across Copilot+ PCs, we saw how it could get turned off but then soon get enabled via default via the entire process for setup.

The company mentioned through a new blog post how it was doing a lot on this front to ensure options like Recall would ask users directly if they wish to opt in or not. If yes, it would be activated and if not, you can miss out on it at any time and choose to alter it at a later date.

The company added how it hopes to make the feature more secure in a few days with the addition of encryption for all data stores through Recall. This is right after a host of security researchers added how most of the data was stored using plain text.

The post was seen reiterating how all information gets stored as well as processed through devices. Meanwhile, the company did add how the feature would still be active and users would have great controls regarding whatever is getting captured.

Image: DIW-Aigen

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World