They will just enable it by default later when the heat passes. They always do. You no longer own Windows.

“The ability to disable the…feature during the setup process…” does not mean opt in, that means opt out.

Knowing windows setup, you need to click customize during the setup process and then go through several setup pages before you’re presented this option (or have to dig into additional/advanced settings to find it).

Most people won’t do this, won’t know how to do this, or will receive the pc with the initial setup complete and won’t know if this is on or off.

Ok, let's assume (for the sake of argument) that everything is on the up-and-up, and Microsoft will behave in a completely equitable and user-friendly way with regard to this feature going forward. Where does that leave us?

There is a spyware feature built into Windows 11. It is off by default, but a malware that wants to capture this kind of information doesn't have to install anything, and it doesn't have to run any background processes that might get caught by a system monitor or blocked by application whitelisting. All it has to do is turn this built-in feature on, and then exfiltrate the data later.

Setting this off by default doesn't remove the security issue.

They're just going to do a classical boil-the-frog operation:

• Step 1: Make it opt-in and present it as the new cool thing.
• Step 2: Make it opt-out, and if the users opts out, show a scary warning about how the cool thing won't work anymore.
• Step 3: Silently opt-in, and hide the opt-out option deeply in a settings menu.
• Step 4: Silently opt-in, remove opt-out, but it still works with a registry hack. Microsoft apologists will still thinks it's cool because "just use this simple registry hack bro".
• Step 5: Remove opt-out alltogether, and silently opt-in everyone who had previously opted out.
• Step 6: Enjoy their boiled frog!

Still in the os...

...For now...

I still don't trust Microsoft. I hadn't bought a Windows since Windows 10, and this won't change that.

WHY THE FUCK WOULD SOMEONE WILLINGLY OPT IN?!

Who could have predicted this backlash?

Until they flip the setting by themselves because ms tend to do that

...says the company that wanted to destroy every bit of your privacy. I don't care what they "promise", don't listen to them.

Microsoft is finished. Install Linux.

Lies but ok.

I'm sure it's corporate speak for 'unless you opt into opting out of Microsoft recording everything's

I have zero reason to trust companies who are known to not be trust worthy.

And who's to say they don't have this 'opt in' setting enabled for a week then upon the first update, whoops...it was auto enabled for everyone 'sorry...you must not out now and sorry not sorry but we already stole everything. See y'all next update!'

They use dark patterns and cryptic dialog boxes to get old people to opt in.

If it's an embedded feature, then I categorically refuse to trust that I the user will have sole control over the on/off toggle.

I am basing my suspicions on Microsoft fucking around with my user settings over several decades and Windows iterations.

Microsoft will just enable it via an update once all the fervor dies down. They haven’t abandoned the plan, and won’t, not while your data is pure profit for them.

Hell with them, no more Windows PCs in my home. I’m sick to death of everyone and their mother trying to both advertise to me and sell my data without my permission and at zero benefit to me.

Do they really think we believe any of their lies? We don't control Windows, anti-libre software (it fails to include a libre software license text file, like AGPL). Dangerous! 🚩

I feel like if browser history was invented today people would have the same reaction to it.

No one is going to opt-in to having screenshots taken of their activities on the OS. If no one opts-in then it will hinder Microsoft's original plan of collection such data for copilot. Along comes the new marketing language to soften the approach and they still collect data.

This is the best summary I could come up with:

Microsoft had originally planned to turn Recall on by default, but the company now says it will offer the ability to disable the controversial AI-powered feature during the setup process of new Copilot Plus PCs.

Recall uses local AI models to screenshot mostly everything you see or do on your computer and then give you the ability to search and retrieve anything in seconds.

Everything in Recall is designed to remain local and private on-device, so no data is used to train Microsoft’s AI models.

TotalRecall extracts the Recall database so you can easily view what text is stored and the screenshots that Microsoft’s feature has generated.

“In some cases, this will mean prioritizing security above other things we do, such as releasing new features or providing ongoing support for legacy systems.”

Davuluri references Microsoft’s SFI principles in today’s response, noting that the company is taking action to improve Recall security.

The original article contains 747 words, the summary contains 151 words. Saved 80%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

Microsoft speaks.... thhhhe bullllshitttt -lazlo voice

*Windows won’t take screenshots of everything you do after all (that the company will admit to without you knowing)— unless you opt in