Windows 11 sure loves finding sneaky ways to collect your data. And the worst part is that you may not have even realized that you’ve opted in to some of its data-draining tricks.
Reclaim your privacy with these five ways to stop Windows 11 from collecting personal data.
Method 1: Stop Edge From Collecting Tracking Data
Privacy and Microsoft Edge aren’t friends. The browser is constantly collecting your data to see how you use the web. Getting tighter about the data it tracks is a good start for solving your privacy woes.
Step 1. Select the little ellipses icon at the top-right of your screen and go to “Settings.”
Step 2. Head to “Privacy, search, and services” and toggle on the “Tracking Prevention” option.
Step 3. If you want to get super private about things, select the “Strict” option. That will block almost all trackers websites use, though you may sacrifice some performance in the bargain.
Method 2: Prevent Typing and Voice Data Collection
Microsoft wants to know what you’re saying to your device, and even what you’re typing into it. Granted, it anonymizes the data it collects (or so it says) so you’re not identifiable. However, this form of tracking still feels like an overreach that you can fix with these steps.
Step 1. Type “Settings” into your Windows search bar and select the app that pops up.
Step 2. Head to the “Privacy & security” menu and click “Diagnostics & feedback.”
Step 3. See that “Improve inking and typing” setting? That’s Microsoft’s sneaky name for its typing-based data collection. Turn it off – you don’t need Microsoft’s so-called improvements.
Method 3: Turn Off Edge’s Saved Data
We’re heading back to Edge to disable a few settings that allow Microsoft to collect and share some super-sensitive data.
Step 1. Head into the “Settings” menu using the ellipses icon at the top-right of the screen.
Step 2. Head into “Profiles” and click the arrow next to “Sync.” From here, you should toggle off the “Passwords” and “History” settings, as you don’t need that data being synced across all of your devices.
Step 3. You’re not quite done yet. Head into “Share browsing data with other Windows features,” and toggle it off. This stops Microsoft from sharing your Edge browsing data with other apps in Windows, such as your search bar.
Method 4: Stop Sending Operational Data
Microsoft’s tendrils even extend into how your device is working and how well it functions. The data collected isn’t really all that important and it’s supposedly anonymized. Microsoft uses it to understand how quickly certain apps load on different setups. Still, you might not want to send this data.
Step 1. Head to “Settings” using your Windows search bar and select “Privacy & security” from the navigation menu.
Step 2. Head into “Diagnostics & feedback under the “Windows permission” menu.
Step 3. Toggle off both the “Send optional diagnostic data” and “Tailored experiences” options.
Method 5: Stop Windows 11 From Collecting Personal Data It Sends to Ad Partners
This is the big one – preventing Microsoft from sharing your data with unknown third parties. You need to block your “advertising ID” to make this happen.
Step 1. You’re heading back to the “Privacy & security” section of “Settings” for your first step.
Step 2. Head into the “General” menu you’ll find under “Windows permissions.”
Step 3. Switch the toggle to off for “Let apps show me personalized ads by using my advertising ID.” There are a couple of other potential privacy saves here, including blocking Microsoft from tracking app launches and accessing your language list.
Thanks for your feedback!
