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Why is Microsoft monitoring how long you use Windows 10?


Batu69

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The various privacy concerns surrounding Windows 10 have received a lot of coverage in the media, but it seems that there are ever more secrets coming to light. The Threshold 2 Update did nothing to curtail privacy invasion, and the latest Windows 10 installation figures show that Microsoft is also monitoring how long people are using the operating system.

 

This might seem like a slightly strange statistic for Microsoft to keep track of, but the company knows how long, collectively, Windows 10 has been running on computers around the world. To have reached this figure (11 billion hours in December, apparently) Microsoft must have been logging individuals' usage times. Intrigued, we contacted Microsoft to find out what on earth is going on.

 

If the company has indeed been checking up on when you are clocking in and out of Windows 10, it's not going to admit it. I asked how Microsoft has been able to determine the 11 billion hours figure. Is this another invasion of privacy, another instance of spying that users should be worried about? "I just wanted to check where this figure came from. Is it a case of asking people and calculating an average, working with data from a representative sample of people, or it is a case of monitoring every Windows 10 installation?"

 

You think that Microsoft -- keen as it is on transparency -- would be quite happy to explain how it came about the information, and why it is being collected in the first place. But no. A Microsoft spokesperson provided BetaNews with the following statement:

 

Quote

Thank you for your patience as I looked into this for you. Unfortunately my colleagues cannot provide a comment regarding your request. All we have to share is this Windows blog post.

 

Microsoft's spying is intrusive enough to reveal how long you have been using Windows 10, but the company is not willing to be open about the collection of this data.

Cause for concern, or is this just another example of what we have come to expect from Microsoft?

 

Article source

 

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Windows 10 is reason enough for people to keep fun of Microsoft

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JessicaLeigh

A Windows 10 prompt popped up on my screen just as I was getting up to get myself a drink from the refrigerator.  It read, "ATTENTION: HOW LONG WILL YOU BE IN THE KITCHEN?"  ;)

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If these dolts know when you are using your Windows 10 box, how come they always suggest 3:30 am to me as a time to install updates? The box has NEVER been on at that time, good luck with doing the updates then!

 

Incompetence and bullying seem to be Microsoft's strengths these days.

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Default is it will wake and install updates while you sleep so youre not bothered.

Over time the wait to install updates time apparently changes as it learns when you doze or whatever. 

My latest update install messages say will install at 8am.

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If I was a company and I made a operating system I would want to know how information about the operating system only the relevant to how its being used etc etc etc.  I honestly wouldnt care to send telemetry if I had the bandwidth for it.  Technically you dont own the operating system if you buy it you are just buying a license to use it.  With that said they are going overboard with the telemetry.  Users have said there not taking into account the number of users who install the operating system and then remove it I think this maybe there way of getting that statistic.

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You aren't using Windows 10, Windows 10 is using you and you are becoming Microsoft androids with no will of your own as to what your computer does. :lol:

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1 hour ago, mikie said:

Default is it will wake and install updates while you sleep so youre not bothered.

 

Good idea, except not even the geniuses at Microsoft can wake a desktop PC that's been shutdown and its wall power switch flicked off.  :)

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Really  on my windows 8.1,  i never had one warning  about nothing . because i  never installed the get windows 10 updates .Some people like windows 10 after all  its only 6mths old and it has a 164m users there's  not  much software made by any one else that ever accomplished  this so fast.  If  you're too dumb to prevent updates from installing  on older versions  then you're dumb enough  to catch malware  or anything else . You need  to learn how to run computers . Its not my responsibility to prevent  the whole world  from installing  windows  10 and really  you're in a losing battle this time  . In 4 years almost everyone will have upgraded  or they want get security updates . I heard the same shit  when vista and win7 came  out that everyone was going to stay  on  XP  and now only 8% out of a 100% use it , that held true to there  word .  As long  as you're  using there products  they own most of you  . Most of you  bad mouthing  it will  take the plunge. Only  they will be trying to push it on you for 6 more months . And then you will  have to buy  it to keep getting security updates after 2020  if you're still on windows 7. You people  act like  its going to be free forever but its not.

 

Here's whats going to happen. These  are you're  choices

1. You will stay in the small percent  of people who chose something old over security updates.

2. You will use something  besides  windows were it can still get security updates.

3. You will  use windows 10 and get security updates.

 

Its not rocket science.

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9 hours ago, Karlston said:

If these dolts know when you are using your Windows 10 box,

how come they always suggest 3:30 am to me as a time to install updates?

The box has NEVER been on at that time, good luck with doing the updates then!

Same, here. :yes:

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2 hours ago, pc71520 said:

Same, here. :yes:

I tend to keep my PC on all the time, but I used to ALWAYS shutdown in the days of XP (not sleep, not hibernate, shut down outright). There was no "wake" to be had, and yet they kept that time, and it's still the default.

 

It's not as big a deal though, as now if you miss these tasks, they fire them off later when you are using, or when on but idle/low usage.

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