Windows 10 tracking protection. Speech, handwriting

More than three years have passed since the release of Windows 10, and the problem of leaking user data to Microsoft servers has not been resolved. Moreover, it was aggravated by a forced reset of privacy settings and a restart of the disabled update service. In this article, we will compare several utilities for managing spyware components of the OS and see how effective they are on modern builds of Windows 10.

Microsoft has never hidden the fact that they collect information about users, they just used to limit themselves to flowery phrases about sending “certain information in order to improve the user experience.” After the European Data Protection Regulation and a number of other laws came into force, the company's lawyers had to disclose the details. You can read about what data is collected, where it is transferred, how it is processed and in what cases it is disclosed.

Microsoft has gotten away with consumers by allegedly giving them the opportunity to independently configure the type and amount of data transferred. To do this, you need to install the update package (for those with a build lower than 15063.0) and use the privacy screen. It is advisable to do this during the installation stage.

As planned, the user gets the feeling that if everything is turned off, then the data will not leak. However, this is a deliberately created illusion. Let's run the sniffer and see how things really are.

Testing methodology

All tests were carried out in parallel on two test builds of Windows 10 Pro - 1709 and 1803. To ensure that the testing conditions were identical, each anti-spyware program was deployed in clones of the virtual machine. The screenshots in the article first show a snapshot of the work in 1709, and then in 1803, unless otherwise noted. Wireshark 2.6.3 64 bit, TCPView v. were used as auxiliary utilities. 3.05 and Regshot v. 2.1.0.17.

In all tested programs, the blocking settings were selected to the maximum. If some function or application is not blocked, an unspecified error will occur. It will not be clear: whether it is an unblocked item that leads to data leakage, or whether the program was unable to disable some function. The ideal result is a network traffic dump without Microsoft IP addresses. Let's see who can cope with this task, but first, let's check the standard privacy management functions in Windows.

Checking your privacy settings

If you leave the default settings, then after loading the OS you will immediately see a large flow of outgoing traffic to Microsoft addresses.

Now we disable everything that is disabled on the privacy screen. The result is obvious.

However, even after switching all the flags to the prohibiting position, some data is immediately sent to the Microsoft Azure cloud platform, and in Singapore. In the Wireshark logs, I noticed the IP addresses of Microsoft network nodes from different countries around the world. Apparently this is how load balancing works. The connection with them is not permanent (I got in touch, sent what I needed and disconnected the connection). The pool of addresses is very large. I double-checked them and found that almost all of them belong to Microsoft or its partner networks.

Comparison of programs

For comparison, we selected the following anti-spyware programs: Blackbird 1.0.28, Destroy Windows 10 Spying 1.0.1.0, DoNotSpy10 4.0, O&O ShutUp10 1.6.1399, Disable Win Tracking 3.2.1 and WPD 1.2.940. All these applications have one goal - to prevent Microsoft from obtaining any data in a known way. They are also not without various bonuses such as blocking updates. Here is a rough list of what to expect from such utilities:

• disable user activity recording;
• disable sending data about keyboard input;
• disable sending handwriting samples;
• disabling diagnostic data collection (telemetry);
• disable location data collection;
• disable and reset Cortana personal settings;
• disabling Internet access for Windows Media DRM;
• disable app access to account information, calendar, messages, camera, microphone, and location;
• (optional) disable Windows Update service for other products.

Of course, this is not a complete list, but it is a reasonable minimum that is worth focusing on. All these changes can be made manually. Such “anti-spyware” utilities are captivating only because they use hundreds of tweaks in a couple of clicks.

How do these utilities actually work?

1. Change the registry keys responsible for privacy settings.
2. Add to the file %WINDIR%\System32\drivers\etc\hosts the URLs of network nodes known to the authors of the program, to which Microsoft dumps data.
3. Add deny rule sets to the Windows Firewall that block connections to known Microsoft IP addresses.
4. Stop tracking services.
5. Remove "spy" scheduler jobs.
6. In the hardcore version, system files and directories responsible for “spy” functions are deleted.

WARNING

An attempt to achieve maximum privacy with the help of such programs can lead to the fact that the necessary components will stop working, Windows activation will fail, the OS will behave unstable or will not boot at all. We strongly recommend that you do not limit yourself to their built-in backup tools, but use third-party programs to create a complete disk image. With it, it is guaranteed that it will be possible to return the system to its original state, no matter what happens to it during the experiments.

Blackbird 1.0.28

The program runs in console mode. It initially has only three functions:

• scan the system and display all (according to the developer) detected problems;
• launch the lock manager;
• make a backup of the settings. I want to especially highlight this feature. Not every program allows you to do this, so if something goes wrong, we simply restore the settings to the blocking state and move on. The backup is placed in the program folder, and when it is made, the program changes one of its functions from “Backup” to “Restore from backup”.

After scanning, a very large list of “shortcomings” is given that need to be corrected.

There are indeed many points in it, but there are very controversial points. For example, the first thing that caught my eye was the blocking option for the W32Time service. If the computer is in a domain, how can I synchronize the time with the server?

Let's move on to the blocking list. Click A on the main screen of the program and see this picture.

Please note that build 1803 added several new features, so 78 points are subject to blocking, and not 70, as in 1709. Here is a clear example of why I chose two releases of Windows 10 for the test.

The list of components that Blackbird can disable does not include Windows Update. The disabling process itself is inconvenient: there are no ready-made settings profiles, each item must be selected separately.

After completing the steps in build 1709, we managed to disable all “tracking” functions, the program did a great job. On build 1803, one function was never disabled, and for some reason the total number became 79.

Two days of observing the behavior of operating systems showed that after running Blackbird, outgoing traffic decreased significantly. However, the test computer with build 1803 constantly transmitted data to IP 104.25.219.21. Shodan says it is owned by renowned cloud provider Cloudflare. As far as I know, Microsoft has been renting hosting from him for a long time for virtual servers for collecting statistics. No other such network activity was observed, except for downloading updates.

Blackbird generally coped with blocking tracking functions, but both test builds became inoperative because of it. The Start menu does not open. Edge and IE won't launch. The application store and mail try to start, but immediately close. There are messages in the notification panel that cannot be opened. In general, it is impossible to live with such a crippled operating system. At least the updates installed without problems!

When restoring from a backup created by Blackbird, it didn’t get any better. In build 1709, Windows activation failed and two registry errors appeared. After rebooting, none of the problems were resolved. Build 1803 was not able to launch Blackbird at all to restore from a backup, starting to complain about a file system error (although everything was fine with the FS).

The conclusion is obvious. Blackbird place in our former section “Western Construction”.

Destroy Windows 10 Spying 1.0.1.0

Destroy Windows 10 Spying is a program that is most likely already heard by everyone who has wondered how to disable the transfer of their data to Microsoft.

I will show you how to disable surveillance in Windows 10. Many are very afraid and concerned about this problem and are afraid to disclose their data and personal information, which goes to Microsoft. And such people only care about Microsoft and are not at all afraid of Google and Andoid, iOS remembers your position with an accuracy of 5 meters.

Enter Windows 10 settings by clicking on the start button in the bottom left and selecting “Settings”.

The Windows 10 settings will open. Now let’s go through each item in detail.

Go to the “System - Applications and Features” tab and uninstall the Microsoft W-Fi application. To prevent Wi-Fi connection data from being sent to the corporation, and also to prevent you from being offered Wi-Fi points from Microsoft.

Here are the reviews and ratings of the Microsoft Wi-Fi application located on the microsoft website microsoft.com/en-us/store/apps/microsoft-wi-fi/9nblgggxw3p8

In the “Options - Devices” tab, disable automatic correction of misspelled words and highlighting of misspelled words, since when enabled, all text you type will be analyzed, scanned and sent.

In the Settings - Network and Internet - Wi-Fi tab, scroll down and click on Advanced Settings.

In your wireless settings, turn off network discovery to prevent your PC from being visible on public networks. Also disable metered connection.

Here, disable “Connect to suggested open hotspots” - these are free Wi-Fi networks.

Do you know that iOS also monitors your movements and all typed text and correspondence? I already wrote about this in the article. And the Punto Switcher program can and does monitor all the text you type.

In this video I talked about surveillance in Punto Switcher (watch from 6:27).

In the “Settings - Personalization - Start” tab, disable all items so that the system does not track programs that you use most often and programs you recently installed.

In the "Settings - Accounts - Email and Accounts" tab, disable your Microsoft account and use only a local account so as not to be tied to Microsoft.

Immediately in the “Synchronizing your settings” tab, disable all the items, but if you are using a local account, they will not be enabled.

In the “Options - Time and Language” tab, disable setting the time automatically, as well as automatically setting the time zone, so that someone does not know what time zone you are in.

In the “Settings - Privacy - General” tab, disable the ability to use your ID to receive advertising collected specifically for you based on your requests and interests. Also disable the Smart Screen filter (it is already present in modern versions of Internet browsers).

Scroll down and turn off the slider for "allow websites to provide local information by accessing my language list." Then click on the line “Manage your receipt of advertising from Microsoft and other personalization information.”

This will open the Microsoft website with information about advertising.

On the right there will be a slider for personalized advertising in this browser, disable this slider.

Now your requests and interests will not be taken into account by the corporation.

Microsoft's privacy statement tells you to whom and when Microsoft may disclose your personal information.

Microsoft has access to your data and files in One Drive and Outlook and will analyze and disclose it for various purposes.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Location” tab, click on “change” to turn off your location.

By default, location is enabled for your device.

Turn off location tracking.

Now your location will not be available to the corporation.

Scroll down the page and click "Clear" to clear your previously saved location data.

Scroll below to disable all apps to prevent these apps from using your location data.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Camera” tab, prohibit applications from using the camera and disable all applications that have access to your webcam or the camera on your smartphone or tablet.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Microphone” tab, disable the ability for applications to have access to your microphone.

In the Settings - Privacy - Speech, Handwriting and Text tab, click Stop learning to turn off Cortana.

This will turn off Cortava, click turn off.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Account Information” tab, disable application access to your account information.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Contacts” tab, disable all applications that have access to your contacts.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Calendar” tab, disable access to the calendar for all applications.

Also, don't forget about the Windows 10 setup shown in this video.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Call Log” tab, disable the ability for applications to access your call log.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Email” tab, disable the ability of applications to access email and messaging.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Messaging” tab, disable the ability of applications to read or send messages (SMS and MMS).

In the “Settings - Privacy - Radio” tab, disable application access to your radio modules.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Other devices” tab, disable the ability to automatically synchronize information.

In the “Settings - Confidentiality - Reviews and Diagnostics” tab, set the frequency of generating reviews to “never”. Under Diagnostics and Usage Data, select "basic information" so that the reports include only basic information about your PC.

In the “Settings - Privacy - Background Applications” tab, disable all applications so that they do not run in the background.

In the “Settings - Update and Security - Windows Update” tab, click more details.

In the advanced settings for Windows updates, select “Notify me when a restart is scheduled” and check the “Defer updates” checkbox so that no new updates are installed.

Delaying Windows 10 updates means new Windows features won't download and install for months.

Also in the advanced settings for Windows updates, click “Choose how and when to receive updates.”

Disable updates from several places so as not to download updates like in torrent trackers. That is, when updating from several places is enabled, your PC is used as a client (seeder/leecher) and distributes already downloaded updates, and also downloads them from the computers of other users in order to reduce the load on Microsoft servers.

In the “Settings - Update & Security - Windows Defender” tab, disable cloud protection if you do not want to send information about security threats detected by Windows Defender.

Scroll below to turn off automatic sample submissions.

You can also add exceptions (files and folders) so that these files and folders are not scanned and Windows Defender does not look for viruses and malware in them and simply does not poke into them. Click add exception.

For example, you can add a folder on your PC to exclude it from being scanned by Windows Defender. Or you can add file extensions or specific files and processes.

Here is an example to show that the MOVIE folder is excluded from scanning.

In the “Settings - Update and Security - For Developers” tab, set the “Windows Store Apps” item so that applications are installed only from the Windows Store and no third-party applications can be installed.

And here is a video clip by Dmitry Bachilo from his official YouTube channel, which talks about how every few minutes Windows 10 takes a screenshot of your PC and what’s on its monitor and sends it to Microsoft (watch from 1:56, and at 4:41 The main thing).

And here is a video lesson on this topic.

Since the release of the new version of the OS from Microsoft, a lot of information has appeared on the Internet about Windows 10 surveillance and that the OS spies on its users, inexplicably uses their personal data, and more. The concern is understandable: people think that Windows 10 is collecting their personalized personal data, which is not entirely true. Just like your favorite browsers, websites, and even the previous version of Windows, Microsoft collects anonymous data to improve the OS, search, other system functions... Well, and to show you advertising.

In Windows 10 settings, there is an entire “Privacy” section for configuring relevant settings and disabling some functions related to “spying”. Press the Win+I keys on your keyboard (or click on the notification icon, and then “All settings”), and then select the desired item.

The privacy settings have a whole set of items, each of which we will consider in order.

Are common

• Allow apps to use my ad recipient ID - turn off.
• Enable SmartScreen filter - enable (the item is not included in the Creators Update).
• Send my writing information to Microsoft - turn off (the option is not available in the Creators Update).
• Allow websites to provide local information by accessing my language list - turn off.

Location

In the “Location” section, you can disable location detection for your computer as a whole (it is also disabled for all applications), as well as for each application that can use such data separately (below in this section).

Speech, handwriting, and text input

In this section, you can disable tracking of your typed characters, speech and handwriting input. If you see a “Meet Me” button in the “Meet Me” section, this means that these functions have already been disabled.

If you see a “Stop learning” button, click it to disable the storage of this personal information.

Camera, microphone, account information, contacts, calendar, radio, messaging and more

All of these sections allow you to turn off the use of relevant hardware and data on your system by applications (the safest option). They can also allow their use for certain applications and prohibit them for others.

Reviews and diagnostics

Set “Never” to “Windows should ask for my feedback” and “Basic information” (“Basic” amount of data in the Creators Update) to the paragraph about sending data to Microsoft if you do not want to share information with it.

Background applications

Additional options that may make sense to disable in the privacy settings (for Windows 10 Creators Update):

• Applications' use of your account information (under Account Information).
• Allow applications to access contacts.
• Allow applications to access email.
• Allow applications to use diagnostic data (in the Application Diagnostics section).
• Allow applications to access devices.

An additional way to give Microsoft less information about yourself is .

Additional privacy and security settings

For greater security, you should also perform a few more steps. Return to the All Settings window and go to the Network & Internet section and open the Wi-Fi section.

Disable the options “Search for paid plans for nearby recommended open hotspots” and “Connect to suggested open hotspots” and Hotspot 2.0 Networks.

Go back to the Settings window, then go to “Update & Security”, then in the “Windows Update” section, click “Advanced options”, and then click “Choose how and when to receive updates” (link at the bottom of the page).

Disable receiving updates from multiple locations. This will also prevent other computers on the network from receiving updates from your computer.

And, as a final point: you can disable (or manually start) the Windows service “Diagnostic Tracking Service”, since it also sends data to Microsoft in the background, and disabling it should not affect the performance of the system.

Additionally, if you use the Microsoft Edge browser, look in the advanced settings and disable the forecasting and data saving features there. Cm. .

Programs to disable surveillance Windows 10

Since the release of Windows 10, many free utilities have appeared to disable Windows 10 spyware features, the most popular of which are presented below.

DWS (Destroy Windows 10 Spying)

DWS is the most popular program for disabling Windows 10 surveillance. The utility is in Russian, is constantly updated, and also offers additional options (, removing built-in applications).

O&O ShutUp10

The free program for disabling Windows 10 surveillance O&O ShutUp10 is probably one of the simplest for a novice user, in Russian and offers a set of recommended settings for safely disabling all tracking functions in 10.

One of the useful differences between this utility and others is detailed explanations for each disabling option (called by clicking on the name of the parameter being enabled or disabled).

You can download O&O ShutUp10 from the official website of the program https://www.oo-software.com/en/shutup10

Ashampoo AntiSpy for Windows 10

In the original version of this article, I wrote that many free programs have appeared to disable the spying capabilities of Windows 10 and did not recommend using them (little-known developers, quick release of programs, and therefore their possible imperfection). Now one of the fairly well-known companies, Ashampoo, has released its AntiSpy utility for Windows 10, which, it seems to me, you can trust without fear of ruining anything.

The program does not require installation, and immediately after launch you will have access to enable and disable all available user tracking functions in Windows 10. Unfortunately for our user, the program is in English. But even in this case, you can easily use it: just select the Use recommended settings item in the Action section to immediately apply the recommended personal data security settings.

You can download Ashampoo AntiSpy for Windows 10 from the official website www.ashampoo.com.

W.P.D.

WPD is another high-quality free utility for disabling surveillance and some other functions of Windows 10. Among the possible disadvantages is the presence of only Russian interface language. One of the advantages is that this is one of the few utilities that supports the Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB version.

The main functions of disabling “spying” are concentrated on the program tab with the image of an “eye”. Here you can disable policies, services, and tasks in the Task Scheduler that are somehow related to the transfer and collection of personal data to Microsoft.

Two other tabs may also be interesting. The first is Firewall Rules, which allows you to configure Windows 10 firewall rules in one click so that Windows 10 telemetry servers, Internet access of third-party programs are blocked, or updates are disabled.

The second is convenient removal of built-in Windows 10 applications.

You can download WPD from the official website of the developer https://getwpd.com/

Additional Information

Possible problems caused by Windows 10 anti-spying software (create restore points so you can easily roll back changes if necessary):

• Disabling updates while using default settings is not the safest or healthiest practice.
• Adding many Microsoft domains to the hosts file and firewall rules (blocking access to these domains), subsequent possible problems with the operation of some programs that require access to them (for example, problems with the operation of Skype).
• Potential problems with the operation of the Windows 10 Store and some sometimes necessary services.
• In the absence of restore points, it is difficult to manually return the settings to their original state, especially for a novice user.

And in conclusion, the author’s opinion: in my opinion, the paranoia about Windows 10 spying is overblown, and much more often we have to deal with the harm of disabling surveillance, especially for novice users using free programs for these purposes. Among the functions that really interfere with life, I can only mention “recommended applications” in the Start menu (), and among the dangerous ones - automatic connection to open Wi-Fi networks.

What seems especially surprising to me is the fact that no one blames their Android phone, browser (Google Chrome, Yandex), social network or messenger so much for spying, which see, hear, know everything, transfer it where it should and should not, and actively use namely personal, not anonymized data.

Hello, dear friends! With each new update to the Windows operating system, surveillance of users became more and more intrusive. Tracking is expressed in the collection of various data about the user, in saving logins and passwords. This information is usually used for advertising, but no one wants personal data to be available to anyone else, regardless of whether the person has a clear conscience or not.

Microsoft's latest creation, Windows 10, has become the most sophisticated control tool. This version of the operating system uses several services to send data to Windows servers. After reading this article, you will be able to isolate yourself from unnecessary surveillance. Simple instructions, high-quality screenshots and videos will help you with this.

We will look at two ways to disable tracking in Windows 10:

- Using the program.

— Manually – by changing parameters in Windows 10.

How does Microsoft explain the addition of such services?

First of all, I would like to note the fact that Microsoft representatives have been asked this question about surveillance in Windows 10 more than once. Employees of this corporation assure us that these services are not configured for additional “surveillance”, but to improve the quality of the “computer-to-computer” connection. man" and "man-computer". Indeed, some applications have made it easier to manage your computer and its services. However, not every ordinary user knows how to disable tracking in Windows 10.

For example, you can take the Cortana assistant program:

1. When errors and malfunctions occur in the Windows operating system, warning signals appear;

2. The system notifies you about upcoming events. This is a useful function for business people who always need to remember their plans and upcoming activities;

3. Windows 10 introduces full control and configuration of your computer using voice commands. You can make changes in the control panel, as well as manage individual applications.

Indeed, without services that collect information, it would be impossible to create such an assistant. But this is only one service that provides communication between Microsoft servers and user data. There are also other functions that are aimed at collecting personal data. The built-in and, most importantly, hidden keylogger causes particular suspicion among users. Its task is quite simple - to record data entered from the keyboard and then send it to Microsoft servers.

There is also a possibility that even video recordings from a webcam are sent to the corporation’s servers. Users learned about this when they noticed large packets of data that were sent to Microsoft servers during a conversation on Skype. After this, many users had a strong desire to completely get rid of surveillance, because saving queries in a search engine is one thing, but saving video from a webcam is an invasion of personal life. In this case, many users are already wondering how to disable tracking in Windows 10?

First, you can disable updates, how to do this is described in detail below:

First, let's look at the simplest method - disabling programs that collect data using the Remove Windows 10 Spying Features utility. Download the application http://wintoflash.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=42295 to disable tracking in Windows 10.

The utility allows you to remove surveillance services, as well as tweak Windows 10 - fine-tune the operating system. But we are primarily interested in disabling annoying spyware.

ATTENTION! I strongly recommend that you create a restore point for your operating system. Disabling services may negatively affect the operation of Windows 10, and then you can safely return to the untouched version. If you don’t know how to create a restore point, then first read this article:

So, there is no installation required for the utility, but when downloading, some Internet browsers may be wary of this file, so just confirm the download. Having opened the application, we will see a window with a modest interface, where we are offered to disable certain Windows 10 services. Let’s take a closer look so that we know where to uncheck and where to leave it.

There is no need to explain the effect of the last three points - it’s already clear what the application will do if we leave the checkboxes.

— Delete “Keylogger”, “Tracking” and “WAP Push” - the main services that monitor and send user data, so we definitely leave the checkbox here.

— Disabling scheduled tasks - some tasks do not help or improve system performance in any way, and they take up RAM.

— Disable domains sending data - after disabling this item, feedback from Microsoft servers will be disabled.

— Block unwanted domains – the application disables domains that collect information about computer users.

— Block Advertising ID – disabling this item means blocking the advertising identifier that appeared in the latest version of the operating system.

— Uninstalling the “Metro” program - if you want to disable only some services from this program, you will have to do this work manually. Selecting this item will disable all programs from the “Metro” series.

Think about which services you will need, and then check the boxes next to unnecessary programs and applications. By clicking the “Start” button, you will begin the process of disabling spying services.

For the changes to take effect, all you have to do is restart your computer. Ready!

How to disable tracking in Windows 10 manually?

This method is longer, so we will break it down into several steps. First of all, we will change the Windows settings, then turn off the services that collect information.

The process goes as follows:

1. Go to “Start”, go to “Settings” and select the “Privacy” tab. Next, click on the “General” tab and drag all the sliders to “Disable”, as shown in the screenshot.

2. Go back to the “Privacy” section and turn off “Location”. We should also turn off the study function, which is located in the “Text input, speech” section.

3. The next step is to turn off updates that will restore surveillance services. Go to “Settings”, then to “Updates” and go to “Update Center”. In the “Advanced Settings” tab, you should disable the “Update from different locations” option.

4. We also need to disable some services using the operating system firewall. Open “Start” and enter “Firewall” in the search bar and click on it. Inside the service, we should go to “Data sharing with applications” and turn off the “Remote Assistance” and “Wireless Display” services. As a result, you should get something like the screenshot.

Turning off services.

Here you will have to work with the command line, but there is nothing difficult about it:

We go to the command line (it can be found in Start or through a search service). Now we copy these commands one by one, after entering each of which you should press the “Enter” button:

sc delete DiagTrack

sc delete dmwappushservice

echo "" > C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Diagnosis\ETLLogs\AutoLogger\AutoLogger-Diagtrack-Listener.etl

reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\DataCollection" /v AllowTelemetry /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

Using the Win+R key combination, launch the service editor and enter there: gpedit.msc. We need to turn off the Telemetry service, which is located in Windows components. You will quickly find it using the screenshot below:

In conclusion, I suggest you also watch the following video on how to properly disable tracking in Windows 10.

That's all, now your privacy is not at risk. Concluding today’s article, I would like to know your additional suggestions on how to disable tracking in Windows 10 and what are your general opinions on today’s topic.

The release of Windows 10 generated mostly positive reviews from computer users. The new operating system from Microsoft has become much prettier and more convenient for ordinary computer owners. However, Microsoft has introduced a user tracking system into it, which, according to the company, should help improve the system.

At the same time, tracking in Windows 10 is enabled by default, and if you did not disable these functions during the installation of the operating system, then during operation your computer will constantly send information about you and your actions to Microsoft.

In today's article we will tell you how to disable Windows 10 tracking, which will not only allow you to hide yourself from the all-seeing eye of the American giant, but also speed up your computer a little and reduce the load on the network.

Why Windows 10 spies on users

Microsoft says that the tracking features of Windows 10 collect and send the following data to the company's servers: contact information (your first name, last name, email address, phone number, etc.), location data, your preferences (for example, which sports team you play). you are sick), credentials (logins, passwords, hints), payment system data, and so on.

Microsoft expects that this data will help improve the operating system and user interactions with it. For example, reports of system failures will help the company understand what needs to be fixed so that computer users no longer experience such errors. Or, if you, for example, are a bank employee and often read economic news and view exchange rates on the Internet, then you will be offered thematic advertising targeted at you personally.

It would seem that the goals are noble and perhaps this is so. But, Microsoft is an American company and all your data will be stored with it. Microsft itself can give out user data to intelligence agencies, not to mention hackers who can steal this data from Microsoft servers.

Therefore, it is better to turn off the surveillance functions of Windows 10. Even if you have nothing to hide, it is better to disable surveillance so as not to waste your computer resources and network.

Disable surveillance during Windows 10 installation

You can and should turn off tracking options during the installation of Windows 10. This option appears at the step called “Increase operating speed.”

The vast majority of users click the big “Use standard settings” button and thus agree to the default privacy settings, in which, of course, user tracking is enabled.

To disable tracking during the installation of Windows 10, click on the “settings” item in the lower left corner of the screen.

In the window that appears, you should set all sliders to the “ disabled". This way you will disable the collection of your data entered from the keyboard, voice, disable advertising recommendations and the collection of your location data.

On the second screen, you can turn off page prediction, reporting to Microsoft, connecting to other networks, and so on.

Of all these items, it makes sense to leave enabled only the item “Use SmartScreen Web Services to protect against malicious content.” After that, click “next” and continue installing the OS.

On the "Purchase for Yourself" screen, the system will ask you to specify or create a Microsoft account. Of course you shouldn't do this.

In the lower left corner, click "skip this step."

Disable surveillance in Windows 10

If you have already installed Windows 10 with default settings, where tracking is enabled, nothing prevents you from disabling it when working with Windows 10. Moreover, at the installation stage you cannot disable all tracking functions.

To enter Windows 10 privacy settings, click the Start menu and click the gear (Windows Settings).

Now go to “Confidentiality”.

A privacy settings window will open on the tab " Are common«.

Switch all sliders to off.

At the bottom of the same page, click “Manage your receipt of Microsoft advertising and other personalization information.”

In the browser that opens, make sure that the switches for “Personalized ads in this browser” and “Personalized ads everywhere I use my Microsoft account” are set to “off.” If they are not, turn them off. This function will not turn off advertising, but will make it non-personalized.

Return to the privacy settings menu and go to the “ Location«.

Here we also disable all options. Pay attention to the point “ Location log". Be sure to click there Clear“to delete entries that were made before you turned off tracking options.

Go to the section " Camera". Here we also turn off all the sliders if the list of programs does not include those where you need a camera.

We do the same in the section “ Microphone«.

Chapter " Speech, handwriting, and text input«.

If you see the “Meet me” button in this window, then you have already turned off the option in which Windows 10 will remember your handwriting, voice and characters entered on the keyboard. If there is a “Stop Study” button, then click it to turn off tracking.

Chapter Account information.

We disable and thus prevent applications from accessing your name and other account data.

In the “Feedback and Diagnostics” section, select “ never" And " basic information«.

This will minimize the amount of data sent to Microsoft.

And the last section is “Background applications”. Here you can control which apps are allowed to receive information, send notifications, and update in the background.

As you may have guessed, we turn them all off.

Disabling telemetry

Telemetry allows Microsoft to monitor the load on your computer's system and installed programs for sending and analysis to the company's servers.

To disable telemetry, open a command prompt. To do this, find the “systems” - “command line” folder in the start menu. Right-click on it - “advanced” - “run as Administrator”.

At the command prompt, type the following commands:

1. sc delete DiagTrack and press Enter on your keyboard.
2. sc delete dmwappushservice and press Enter.
3. echo "" > C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Diagnosis\ETLLogs\AutoLogger\AutoLogger-Diagtrack-Listener.etl
4. reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\DataCollection" /v AllowTelemetry /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

These commands first erase all data accumulated by telemetry, then disable this function and enter a ban on further data collection into the registry. Telemetry will now be completely disabled on your computer.

Disable tracking in the Edge browser

Internet Explorer has been replaced by the Edge browser in Windows 10. You may not use it, but it also has functions for spying on the computer user.

Open the Edge browser and go to Settings in the top right corner.

At the very bottom, open “Advanced options”.

In the “Privacy and Services” subsection, find the “Submit Do Not Track Requests” option and turn it on.

This switch prevents the browser and other applications from collecting data and tracking your location.

Disable Windows Defender

In order to disable tracking in Windows 10, you need to understand standard antivirus software. Windows Defender automatically turns off when you install any other antivirus software on your computer. But just in case, make sure you have it disabled.

To do this, click on the Start menu, go to Windows Settings and go to the “Updates and Security” section.

Turn the switches to the "Off" position.

Disable Windows 10 Settings Sync

If you are not using a local computer account, but a Microsoft account, which we recommended at the beginning of this article not to register when installing the system, then you most likely have cloud synchronization enabled.

Go to menu Start — Windows Settings — Accounts — Sync your settings.

Disable synchronization by turning the switch to Off.

Blocking Microsoft servers

As you know, all collected data is sent to Microsoft servers. We can block these addresses on our computer. Thus, even if the data is collected on a computer, it will still not be able to go anywhere.

Open the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc folder and open the hosts file using notepad.

Copy the following lines there to the very bottom of the file.

127.0.0.1 localhost
127.0.0.1 localhost.localdomain
255.255.255.255 broadcasthost
::1 localhost
127.0.0.1 local
127.0.0.1 vortex.data.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 vortex-win.data.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 telecommand.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 telecommand.telemetry.microsoft.com.nsatc.net
127.0.0.1 oca.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 oca.telemetry.microsoft.com.nsatc.net
127.0.0.1 sqm.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 sqm.telemetry.microsoft.com.nsatc.net
127.0.0.1 watson.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 watson.telemetry.microsoft.com.nsatc.net
127.0.0.1 redir.metaservices.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 choice.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 choice.microsoft.com.nsatc.net
127.0.0.1 df.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 reports.wes.df.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 wes.df.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 services.wes.df.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 sqm.df.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 watson.ppe.telemetry.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 telemetry.appex.bing.net
127.0.0.1 telemetry.urs.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 telemetry.appex.bing.net:443
127.0.0.1 settings-sandbox.data.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 vortex-sandbox.data.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 survey.watson.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 watson.live.com
127.0.0.1 watson.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 statsfe2.ws.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 corpext.msitadfs.glbdns2.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 compatexchange.cloudapp.net
127.0.0.1 cs1.wpc.v0cdn.net
127.0.0.1 a-0001.a-msedge.net
127.0.0.1 statsfe2.update.microsoft.com.akadns.net
127.0.0.1 sls.update.microsoft.com.akadns.net
127.0.0.1 fe2.update.microsoft.com.akadns.net
127.0.0.1 65.55.108.23
127.0.0.1 65.39.117.230
127.0.0.1 23.218.212.69
127.0.0.1 134.170.30.202
127.0.0.1 137.116.81.24
127.0.0.1 diagnostics.support.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 corp.sts.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 statsfe1.ws.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 pre.footprintpredict.com
127.0.0.1 204.79.197.200
127.0.0.1 23.218.212.69
127.0.0.1 i1.services.social.microsoft.com
127.0.0.1 i1.services.social.microsoft.com.nsatc.net
127.0.0.1 feedback.windows.com
127.0.0.1 feedback.microsoft-hohm.com
127.0.0.1 feedback.search.microsoft.com

You should get the same result as in the screenshot below.

After that, close the hosts file, saving the changes.

Now the data collected by the tracking functions of Windows 10 will not reach the recipient, even if you forgot to disable any of the tracking options.

Disable Windows 10 surveillance using programs

And the last chapter of our article, which everyone has been waiting for. Of course, all the steps described above can be accomplished using several utilities.

Destroy Windows 10 Spying (DWS)

Perhaps the best utility for removing spyware from Windows 10. The program is absolutely free and open source, so you don’t have to worry about viruses if you download it from the program’s official website. The program can remove and disable telemetry elements, disable Windows Defender, Cortana voice assistant, and much more.

At the time of writing this article, the latest version was DWS 1.6 Build 722. Go to the official website and download the latest release of this utility.

Launch the program and go to the “Settings” tab and select the tracking functions that you want to disable. In my case, this is everything from the proposed list.

After that, go to the “Home” tab and click the Destroy Windows 10 Spying button. After this, the process of removing Windows 10 tracking services, telemetry elements, adding Microsoft servers to the blocked list, and so on will begin.

After the utility completes, it will prompt you to restart your computer.

Disable Win Tracking

Another excellent program for removing spyware from Windows 10. Like DWS, this program is free and available on the github website.

The main difference of this program is that it allows you to selectively disable tracking services on your computer, as well as return them back if you accidentally deleted them.

Although the program is in English, it is extremely easy to work with. On the right you need to choose what you want to do with the selected elements - disable (disable) or delete (delete). After that, select the checkboxes of the tracking elements you do not need and click Go to start the process.

Video on disabling Windows 10 tracking