Microsoft Privacy Statement – Microsoft privacy (original) (raw)

Windows is a personalised computing environment that enables you to seamlessly roam and access services, preferences and content across your computing devices from phones to tablets to the Surface Hub. Rather than residing as a static software programme on your device, key components of Windows are cloud-based, and both cloud and local elements of Windows are updated regularly, providing you with the latest improvements and features. In order to provide this computing experience, we collect data about you, your device, and the way you use Windows. And because Windows is personal to you, we give you choices about the personal data we collect and how we use it. Note that if your Windows device is managed by your organisation (such as your employer or school), your organisation may use centralised management tools provided by Microsoft or others to access and process your data and to control device settings (including privacy settings), device policies, software updates, data collection by us or the organisation or other aspects of your device. Additionally, your organisation may use management tools provided by Microsoft or others to access and process your data from that device, including your interaction data, diagnostic data and the contents of your communications and files.

The Windows Settings, formerly known as PC Settings, is an essential component of Microsoft Windows. It provides a convenient interface for adjusting user preferences, configuring the operating system and managing connected devices so that you can manage user accounts, adjust network settings and personalise various aspects of Windows. Windows provides a mechanism for apps to access various device capabilities such as the device’s camera, microphone, location, calendar, contacts, call history, messages and more, while controlling access to your personal data. Each capability has its own privacy settings page in Windows settings, so you can control which apps can use each capability. Here are some key features of Settings:

For more information about data collection in Windows, see Data collection summary for Windows. This statement discusses Windows 10 and Windows 11 and references to Windows in this section relate to those product versions. Earlier versions of Windows (including Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1) are subject to their own privacy statements.

Activation

When you activate Windows, a specific product key is associated with the device on which your software is installed. The product key and data about the software and your device is sent to Microsoft to help validate your licence to the software. This data may be sent again if there is a need to re-activate or validate your licence. On phones running Windows, device and network identifiers, as well as device location at the time of the first power-up of the device, are also sent to Microsoft for the purpose of warranty registration, stock replenishment, and fraud prevention.

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Activity history

Activity history helps keep track of the things you do on your device, such as the apps and services you use, the files you open, and the websites you browse. Your activity history is created when using different apps and features such as Microsoft Edge Legacy, some Microsoft Store apps, and Microsoft 365 apps and is stored locally on your device.

You can turn settings off or on for storing activity history locally on your device, and you can also clear your device’s activity history at any time by going to Privacy > Activity history in the Windows settings app. Learn more about activity history in Windows.

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Advertising ID

Windows generates a unique advertising ID for each person using a device, which app developers and advertising networks can then use for their own purposes, including providing relevant advertising in apps. When the advertising ID is enabled, both Microsoft apps and third-party apps can access and use the advertising ID in much the same way that websites can access and use a unique identifier stored in a cookie. Thus, your advertising ID can be used by app developers and advertising networks to provide more relevant advertising and other personalised experiences across their apps and on the web. Microsoft collects the advertising ID for the uses described here only when you choose to enable the advertising ID as part of your privacy setting.

The advertising ID setting applies to Windows apps using the Windows advertising identifier. You can turn off access to this identifier at any time by turning off the advertising ID in the Windows settings app. If you choose to turn it on again, the advertising ID will be reset and a new identifier will be generated. When a third-party app accesses the advertising ID, its use of the advertising ID will be subject to its own privacy policy. Learn more about advertising ID in Windows.

The advertising ID setting does not apply to other methods of interest-based advertising delivered by Microsoft or third parties, such as cookies used to provide interest-based display ads on websites. Third-party products accessed through or installed on Windows may also deliver other forms of interest-based advertising subject to their own privacy policies. Microsoft delivers other forms of interest-based ads in certain Microsoft products, both directly and by partnering with third-party ad providers. For more information on how Microsoft uses data for advertising, see the How we use personal data section of this statement.

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Diagnostics

Microsoft collects Windows diagnostic data to solve problems and to keep Windows up to date, secure, and operating properly. It also helps us improve Windows and related Microsoft products and services and, for customers who have turned on the “Tailored experiences” setting, to provide more relevant tips and recommendations to tailor Microsoft and third-party products and services for Windows to the customer’s needs. While the device is running, diagnostic data is collected and periodically transmitted to Microsoft and stored along with one or more unique identifiers that can help us recognise an individual user on an individual device and understand the device’s service issues and use patterns.

There are two levels of diagnostic and activity data: Required diagnostic data and Optional diagnostic data. Certain product documentation and other materials refer to Required diagnostic data as Basic diagnostic data and to Optional diagnostic data as Full diagnostic data.

If an organisation (such as your employer or school) uses Microsoft Entra ID to manage the account it provides to you and enrols your device in the Windows diagnostic data processor configuration, Microsoft’s processing of diagnostic data in connection with Windows is governed by a contract between Microsoft and the organisation. If an organisation uses Microsoft management tools or engages Microsoft to manage your device, Microsoft and the organisation will use and process diagnostic and error data from your device to allow the management, monitoring and troubleshooting of your devices managed by the organisation, and for other purposes of the organisation.

Required diagnostic data includes information about your device, its settings and capabilities, and whether it is performing properly. We collect the following Required diagnostic data:

Optional diagnostic data includes more detailed information about your device and its settings, capabilities, and device health. Optional diagnostic data may also include data about the websites you browse, device activity (also sometimes referred to as usage), and enhanced error reporting that helps Microsoft to fix and improve products and services for all users. When you choose to send Optional diagnostic data, Required diagnostic data will always be included, and we collect the following additional information:

Some of the data described above may not be collected from your device even if you choose to send Optional diagnostic data. Microsoft minimises the volume of Optional diagnostic data it collects from all devices by collecting some of the data from only a subset of devices (sample). By running the Diagnostic Data Viewer tool, you can see an icon which indicates whether your device is part of a sample and also which specific data is collected from your device. Instructions for how to download the Diagnostic Data Viewer tool can be found in the Windows settings app under Diagnostics & feedback.

Specific data items collected in Windows diagnostics are subject to change to give Microsoft flexibility to collect the data needed for the purposes described. For example, to enable Microsoft to troubleshoot the latest performance issue impacting users’ computing experience or update a Windows device that is new to the market, Microsoft may need to collect data items that were not collected previously. For a current list of data types collected at Required diagnostic data and Optional diagnostic data, see Windows Required (Basic level) diagnostic events and fields or Windows Optional (Full level) diagnostic data. We provide limited portions of error report information to partners (such as the device manufacturer) to help them troubleshoot products and services which work with Windows and other Microsoft product and services. They are only permitted to use this information to repair or improve those products and services. We may also share some aggregated, de-identified diagnostic data, such as general usage trends for Windows apps and features, with selected third parties. Learn more about diagnostic data in Windows.

Inking and typing Recognition. You also can choose to help Microsoft improve inking and typing recognition by sending inking and typing diagnostic data. If you choose to do so, Microsoft will collect samples of the content you type or write to improve features such as handwriting recognition, autocompletion, next word prediction, and spelling correction in the many languages used by Microsoft customers. When Microsoft collects inking and typing diagnostic data, it is divided into small samples and processed to remove unique identifiers, sequencing information, and other data (such as email addresses and numeric values) which could be used to reconstruct the original content or associate the input to you. It also includes associated performance data, such as changes you manually make to text, as well as words you've added to the dictionary. Learn more about improving inking and typing in Windows.

If you choose to turn on Tailored experiences, we will use your Windows diagnostic data (Required or Optional as you have selected) to offer you personalised tips, ads and recommendations to enhance Microsoft experiences. If you have selected Required as your diagnostic data setting, personalisation is based on information about your device, its settings and capabilities and whether it is performing properly. If you have selected Optional, personalisation is also based on information about how you use apps and features, plus additional information about the health of your device. However, we do not use information about the websites you browse, the content of crash dumps, speech, typing or inking input data for personalisation when we receive such data from customers who have selected Optional.

Tailored experiences include suggestions on how to customise and optimise Windows, as well as ads and recommendations for Microsoft and third-party products and services, features, apps and hardware for your Windows experiences. For example, to help you get the most out of your device, we may tell you about features you may not know about or that are new. If you are having a problem with your Windows device, you may be offered a solution. You may be offered a chance to customise your lock screen with pictures, or to be shown more pictures of the kind you like, or fewer of the ones you do not. If you stream movies in your browser, you may be recommended an app from the Microsoft Store that streams more efficiently. Or, if you are running out of space on your hard drive, Windows may recommend you try OneDrive or purchase hardware to gain more space. Learn more about tailored experiences in Windows.

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Feedback Hub

Feedback Hub provides a way to gather feedback on Microsoft products and installed first-party and third-party apps. When you use Feedback Hub, Feedback Hub periodically reads the installed app list to determine apps for which feedback can be sent. Feedback Hub determines the apps installed in your device through public APIs. Additionally, for HoloLens, Feedback Hub uses your camera and microphone when you choose to share surroundings and audio input. It also uses picture and document library to access screenshots and screen recordings that you attach for sending as part of feedback.

You can sign-in to Feedback Hub using either your personal Microsoft account or an account provided by your organisation (such as your employer or school) that you use to sign in to Microsoft products. Signing in with your work or school account allows you to submit feedback to Microsoft in association with your organisation. Any feedback you provide whether using your work or school account or personal Microsoft account may be publicly viewable depending on the settings configured by your organisation’s administrators. Additionally, if feedback is provided using your work or school account, your feedback can be viewed through the Feedback Hub or via admin centre by your organisation’s administrators.

When you submit feedback to Microsoft about a problem or add more details to a problem, diagnostic data will be sent to Microsoft to improve Microsoft products and services. Depending on your Diagnostic data settings in the Diagnostics & feedback section of the Windows settings, Feedback Hub will either send diagnostic data automatically or you will have the option to send it to Microsoft at the time you provide feedback. Based on the category chosen when submitting feedback, there may be additional personal data collected that helps to further troubleshoot issues; for example, location related information when submitting feedback about location services or gaze related information when submitting feedback on Mixed Reality. Microsoft may also share your feedback along with the data collected when you submit your feedback with Microsoft partners (such as a device manufacturer, or firmware developer) to help them troubleshoot products and services that work with Windows and other Microsoft products and services. Learn more about diagnostic data in Windows.

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Get Help

Get Help enables Windows users to get technical support on Windows and other Microsoft applications. It provides self-service support (such as links to help articles or directions on how Windows users can solve problems on their own), Diagnostics, and connecting the customer to a live Microsoft agent as appropriate. You can sign into the Get Help component with your Microsoft account to create a consumer support case. Enterprise account users may also be permitted to create a customer support case depending on their organisation’s support contract, and if enabled by their tenant administrator.

Get Help may suggest you run a Diagnostic. If you consent, diagnostic data is handled in accordance with the Diagnostics section.

If permitted by system settings, the system microphone may be used to capture the support question instead of your needing to type. You can control this in the “Microphone Privacy Settings” in the Windows Settings application. Get Help will also access your Application List to aid in opening the Feedback Hub to the correct app if you choose to start the feedback process within Get Help. All feedback will be entered and controlled by the Feedback Hub, as described in the Feedback Hub section of this Privacy Statement. Get Help does not use your location data as part of its services.

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Live captions

Live captions transcribe audio to help with the comprehension of spoken content. Live captions can generate captions from any audio containing speech, whether the audio is online, audio you have downloaded to your device, or audio received from your microphone. By default, transcribing microphone audio is disabled.

Voice data that is captioned is only processed on your device and is not shared to the cloud or with Microsoft. Learn more about live captions.

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Location services and recording

Windows location service. Microsoft operates a location service that helps determine the precise geographic location of a specific Windows device. Depending on the capabilities of the device, the device’s location can be determined with varying degrees of accuracy and may in some cases be determined precisely. When you have enabled location on a Windows device, or you have given permission for Microsoft apps to access location information on non-Windows devices, data about cell towers and Wi-Fi access points and their locations is collected by Microsoft and added to the location database after removing any data identifying the person or device from which it was collected. This de-identified location information is used to improve Microsoft's location services.

Windows services and features, apps running on Windows, and websites opened in Windows browsers can access the device’s location through Windows if your settings allow them to do so. Some features and apps request location permission when you first install Windows, some ask the first time you use the app, and others ask every time you access the device’s location. For information about certain Windows apps that use the device’s location, see the Windows apps section of this privacy statement.

When an app or feature accesses the device’s location and you are signed in with a Microsoft account, your Windows device will also upload its location to the cloud where it is available across your devices to other apps or services that use your Microsoft account and for which you’ve granted permission. We will retain only the last known location (each new location replaces the previous one). Data about a Windows device's recent location history is also stored on the device even if not using a Microsoft account, and certain apps and Windows features can access this location history. You can clear your device's location history at any time in the Windows settings app.

In the Windows settings app, you can also view which apps have access to the device’s precise location or your device's location history, turn off or on access to the device’s location for particular apps, or turn off access to the device’s location. You can also set a default location, which will be used when the location service can’t detect a more exact location for your device.

There are some exceptions to how your device’s location can be determined that are not directly managed by the location settings.

Desktop apps are a specific type of app that won’t ask for separate permission to discover your device location information and won’t appear in the list that allows you to choose apps that can use your location. They can be downloaded from the Microsoft Store, downloaded from the internet, or installed with some type of media (such as a CD, DVD, or USB storage device). They’re opened using an .EXE, .MSI, or .DLL file, and they typically run on your device, unlike web-based apps (which run in the cloud). Learn more about third-party desktop apps and how they may still be able to determine your device’s location when the device’s location setting is off.

Some web-based experiences or third-party apps that surface on Windows could use other technologies (such as Bluetooth, WiFi or mobile modem) or cloud-based location services to determine your device’s location with varying degrees of accuracy, even when you’ve turned off the device location setting.

In addition, to facilitate getting help in an emergency, whenever you make an emergency call, Windows will attempt to determine and share your precise location, regardless of your location settings. If your device has a SIM card or is otherwise using mobile service, your mobile operator will have access to your device’s location. Learn more about location in Windows.

General Location. If you turn on Location services, apps that cannot use your precise location may still have access to your general location, such as your city, postcode or region.

Find my device. The Find my device feature allows an administrator of a Windows device to find the location of that device from account.microsoft.com/devices. To enable Find my device, an administrator needs to be signed in with a Microsoft account and have the location setting enabled. This feature will work even if other users have denied access to location for all their apps. When the administrator attempts to locate the device, users will see a notification in the notification area. Learn more about Find my device in Windows.

Recording. Some Windows devices have a recording feature that allows you to capture audio and video clips of your activity on the device, including your communications with others. If you choose to record a session, the recording will be saved locally on your device. In some cases, you may have the option to transmit the recording to a Microsoft product or service that broadcasts the recording publicly. Important: You should understand your legal responsibilities before recording and/or transmitting any communication. This may include obtaining the prior consent of everyone participating in the conversation or any other authorisations as required. Microsoft is not responsible for how you use recording features or your recordings.

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Narrator

Narrator is a built-in screen reader tool that helps you use Windows without a screen. Narrator offers intelligent image and page title description and web page summaries when you encounter undescribed images and ambiguous links.

When you choose to get an image description by pressing Narrator + Ctrl + D, the image will be sent to Microsoft to perform analysis of the image and generate a description. Images are used only to generate the description and are not stored by Microsoft.

When you choose to get page title descriptions by pressing Narrator + Ctrl + D, the URL of the site you are visiting will be sent to Microsoft to generate the page title description and to provide and improve Microsoft services, such as Bing services as described in the Bing section above.

When you choose to get a list of popular links for a web page by pressing Narrator + double press of S, the URL of the site you are visiting will be sent to Microsoft to generate the summary of popular links and to provide and improve Microsoft services, such as Bing.

You can disable these features at any time by going to Narrator>Get image descriptions, page titles and popular links in Settings in Windows.

You can also send feedback about Narrator to help Microsoft diagnose and resolve problems with Narrator and improve Microsoft products and services, such as Windows. Verbal feedback can be submitted at any time in Narrator by using Narrator Key + Alt + F. When you use this command, the Feedback Hub app will launch, giving you the opportunity to submit verbal feedback. If you enable the setting “Help Make Narrator Better” in the Windows settings app and submit verbal feedback through Feedback Hub, recent device and usage data, including event trace log (ETL) data, will be submitted along with your verbal feedback to improve Microsoft products and services, such as Windows.

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Phone Link - Link to Windows

The Phone Link feature lets you link your Android phone with your Microsoft Account and your iPhone via Bluetooth to connect to your Windows PC. Your Android device will link with your Microsoft Account and your iPhone will link via Bluetooth, enabling a variety of cross-device experiences across all your Windows devices where you are signed in or connected via Bluetooth. You can use Phone Link to see recent photos from your Android phone on your Windows device; make and receive live calls from your Android phone on your Windows device; view and send text messages from your Windows device; view, dismiss, or perform other actions to your Android phone notifications from your Windows device; share your phone screen on your Windows device through Phone Link’s mirroring function; and instantly access Android apps installed on your Android phone on your Windows device. You can use Phone Link to make and receive calls from your iPhone, view and send text messages, and view, dismiss, or perform other actions on your iPhone notification from your Windows device.

To use Phone Link, Link to Windows must be installed on your Android device. You may also optionally download Phone Link to your iPhone.

To use Phone Link, you must log into your Microsoft account on the Phone Link feature on your Windows device and on Link to Windows on your Android phone or Bluetooth enabled on your iPhone. Your Android phone and your Windows device must be connected to the internet. Some features will require you to enable Bluetooth and pair your phone with your PC. To use the Calls feature, your Android phone must also have Bluetooth enabled.

During setting up your Windows device, you can choose to link your phone with your Microsoft account. This is done by signing into Link to Windows on your Android phone, granting permissions and completing the onboarding experience. Once complete, Link to Windows will sync your data to all your Windows PCs where you have signed into your Microsoft account. See below for details on how your data is used.

As part of providing Phone Link’s features to you, Microsoft collects performance, usage and device data that includes, for example, the hardware capabilities of your device and Windows device, the number and duration of your sessions on Phone Link, and the amount of time you spent during setup.

You can unlink your Android phone from your Windows device at any time by going into your Phone Link settings and choosing to remove your Android phone. You can do the same from the settings in Link to Windows on your Android phone. For detailed information, see our support page.

You can unlink your iPhone from your Windows device at any time by going into Phone Link settings and choosing to remove your iPhone. You can do the same from your iPhone by going into Settings > Bluetooth > Selecting your PC name > click on the (i) icon > and choosing Forget This Device. All users can remove the Bluetooth pairing by disabling the experiences.

Text Messages – Android devices. Phone Link allows you to view text messages delivered to your Android phone on your Windows device and send text messages from your Windows device. Only text messages received and sent within the last 30 days are visible on your Windows device. These text messages are temporarily stored on your Windows device. We never store your text messages on our servers or change or delete any text messages on your Android phone. You can see messages sent via SMS (Short Message Service), MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) on Android devices, and messages sent via RCS (Rich Communication Services) on select Samsung devices on select mobile operator networks. To provide this functionality, Phone Link accesses the content of your text messages and the contact information of the individuals or businesses from whom you are receiving or sending text messages.

Text Messages – iPhones. Phone Link allows you to view text messages delivered to your iPhone on your Windows devices and send text messages from your Windows device. Only text messages received and sent within your Bluetooth session or iMessage are visible on your Windows devices. These text messages are temporarily stored on your Windows device. We never store your text messages on our servers or change or delete any text messages on your iPhone. You can see messages sent via SMS (Short Message Service). To provide this functionality, Phone Link accesses the content of your text messages and the contact information of the individuals or businesses from whom you are receiving or sending text messages.

Calls – Android devices. Phone Link allows you to make and receive calls from your Android phone on your Windows device. Through Phone Link, you can also view your recent calls on your Windows device. To activate this feature, you must enable certain permissions on both your Windows device and Android phone, such as call logs access and permission to make phone calls from your PC. These permissions can be revoked at any time under the Phone Link Settings page on your Windows device and your Android phone's settings. Only calls received and dialled within the last 30 days are visible under call logs on your Windows device. These call details are temporarily stored on your Windows device. We do not change or delete your call history on your Android phone.

Calls – iPhones. Phone Link allows you to make and receive calls from your iPhone on your Windows device. Through Phone Link, you can also view your recent calls on your Windows device. To activate this feature, you must enable Sync Contacts feature under Bluetooth settings on your iPhone. These call details are temporarily stored on your Windows device. We do not change or delete your call history on your iPhone.

Photos – Android devices. Phone Link allows you to copy, share, edit, save, or delete photos from your Android phone on your Windows device. Only a limited number of your most recent photos from the Camera Roll and Screenshots folders on your Android phone will be visible on your Windows device at any given time. These photos are temporarily stored on your Windows device and as you take more photos on your Android phone, we remove the temporary copies of the older photos from your Windows device. We never store your photos on our servers or change or delete any photos on your Android phone.

Notifications – Android devices. Phone Link allows you to view your Android phone’s notifications on your Windows device. Through Phone Link, you can read and dismiss your Android phone’s notifications from your Windows device or perform other actions related to the notifications. To activate this Phone Link feature, you must enable certain permissions, such as sync notifications, on both your Windows device and Android phone. These permissions can be revoked at any time under the Phone Link Settings page on your Windows device and your Android phone’s settings. For detailed information, see our support page.

Notifications – iPhones. Phone Link allows you to view your iPhone’s notifications on your Windows device. Through Phone Link, you can read and dismiss your iPhone’s notifications from your Windows device or perform other actions related to the notifications. To activate this Phone Link feature, you must enable certain permissions such as sync notifications, on both your Windows device and iPhone. These permissions can be revoked at any time under the Phone Link Settings page on your Windows device and your iPhone’s Bluetooth settings.

Phone Screen Mirroring – Android devices. On supported devices, Phone Link allows you to view your Android phone’s screen on your Windows device. Your Android phone screen will be visible on your Windows device as a pixel stream and any audio that you enable on your Android phone screen while it is linked to your Windows device through Phone Link will play through your Android phone.

Apps mirroring – Android devices. On supported devices, Phone Link allows you to use your Android apps that are installed on your Android phone on your Windows device. For example, you can launch a music app in your Windows session and listen to audio from that app on your PC speakers. Microsoft collects a list of your installed Android apps and recent activity to provide the service and show you your most recently used apps. Microsoft does not store what apps you have installed or any of the information displayed by the app in your experience with it.

Content transfer – Android devices. On supported devices, Phone Link allows you to copy and paste contents such as files, documents, photos, etc. between your Android phone and your Windows device. You can transfer content from your Android phone to your Windows device and from your Windows device to your Android phone by drag and drop contents between the devices.

Instant Hotspot – Android devices. On supported devices, Link to Windows enables users to share mobile hotspot information with their paired PC over secure Bluetooth communication. Your PC can then be connected to the internet through the Windows network flyout. Please note mobile data charges may apply depending on the mobile data plan you have.

Contacts sync – Android devices. Link to Windows allows you to sync your Android contacts into the Microsoft cloud to access them in other Microsoft products and services. You can enable this feature by going into Link to Windows settings and enabling “Contacts sync” feature. Your contacts information is stored online and associated with your Microsoft account. You may choose to disable sync and delete these contacts at any time. Learn more.

Contacts sync – iPhone. Phone Link allows you to sync your contacts from your iPhone to access them for messaging and calling. You can enable this feature by going into Bluetooth settings on your iPhone and toggle on Sync Contacts under your PC name after connecting your iPhone to Phone Link. You may choose to disable syncing at any time by toggling off Sync Contacts.

Text-to-voice. Phone Link features include accessibility functionality such as text-to-voice. You can activate a text-to-voice feature, which allows you to hear the contents of a text message or notification as audio. If you activate this feature, your text messages and notifications will be read out loud as they are received.

Office Enterprise – Android Devices. Link to Windows allows you to insert photos into web and desktop versions of select Microsoft 365 apps, such as PowerPoint, Excel and Word directly from your device. This requires your IT Administrator to have enabled Optional Connected Experiences for Microsoft Office applications and you will need to associate your mobile device with your work or school account and provide Photos permission to your account. After onboarding, your session will last 15 minutes to enable you to transfer your Photos from your mobile device. To use this feature again, you will need to scan your QR code. Link to Windows does not collect your work or school account information or information about your Enterprise. In order to provide this service, Microsoft uses a cloud service to relay your files for the purpose of inserting the photos into web and desktop version of select Microsoft 365 apps, such as PowerPoint, Excel, and Word files.

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Cross-device experiences

Cross-device experiences in Windows allow you to access your mobile device from your PC using your Microsoft Account. These can be managed under “Mobile Devices” in the Bluetooth & Devices section in your Windows PC Settings. As part of providing these features, Microsoft collects performance usage and device data, including information about the hardware capabilities of your mobile and Windows devices. You can turn this feature on or off at any time in your Windows PC Settings.

Use your mobile device as a connected camera. This feature allows you to use your mobile device’s camera in apps or products on Windows that support camera functionality. You can enable this feature under “Mobile Devices” in the Bluetooth & Devices section in the Settings on your PC. Microsoft does not record or store your camera sessions or any of the information displayed by your camera in any of the applications or products.

Get new photo notifications from your mobile device. This feature allows you to receive notifications from your linked mobile device on your Windows PC. These photos are temporarily stored on your Windows PC while you are editing or opening those photos. You will need to initiate saving to your PC to store those photos until you decide to delete them. We never store your photos on our servers or change or delete any photos on your mobile device.

Show your mobile device in File Explorer. This feature allows you to access your mobile device’s files in File Explorer. You can enable this feature under “Mobile Devices” in the Bluetooth & Devices section in the Settings on your PC. Microsoft will not store your file contents in its services.

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Security and safety features

Device encryption. Device encryption helps protect the data stored on your device by encrypting it using BitLocker Drive Encryption technology. When device encryption is on, Windows automatically encrypts the drive Windows is installed on and generates a recovery key. The BitLocker recovery key for your personal device is automatically backed up online in your personal Microsoft OneDrive account. Microsoft doesn't use your individual recovery keys for any purpose.

Malicious Software Removal Tool. The Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT) runs on your device at least once per month as part of Windows Update. MSRT checks devices for infections by specific, prevalent malicious software ("malware") and helps remove any infections found. When the MSRT runs, it will remove the malware listed on the Microsoft Support website if the malware is on your device. During a malware check, a report will be sent to Microsoft with specific data about malware detected, errors, and other data about your device. If you do not want MSRT to send this data to Microsoft, you can disable MSRT's reporting component.

Microsoft Family. Parents can use Microsoft Family Safety to understand and set boundaries on how their child is using their device. Please carefully review the information at Microsoft Family Safety if choosing to create or join a family group. If you live in a region that requires permission to create an account to access Microsoft services, you may be prompted to request or give parental consent. If a user is under the statutory age in your region, during the registration process they will be prompted to request consent from a parent or guardian by entering an adult’s email. When Family activity reporting is turned on for a child, Microsoft will collect details about how the child uses their device and provide parents with reports of that child's activities. Activity reports are routinely deleted from Microsoft servers.

Microsoft Defender SmartScreen and Smart App Control. Microsoft strives to help protect your device and passwords from unsafe apps, files, and web content.

Microsoft Defender SmartScreen helps protect you when using our services by identifying threats to you, your device, and your passwords. These threats might include potentially unsafe apps or web content that Microsoft Defender SmartScreen discovers while checking websites you visit, files you download, and apps you install and run. When Microsoft Defender SmartScreen checks web and app content, data about the content and your device is sent to Microsoft, including the full web address of the content. When additional analysis is needed to identify security threats, information about the suspicious website or app—such as content displayed, sounds played, and application memory—may be sent to Microsoft. This data will only be used for security purposes in detecting, protecting against, and responding to security incidents, identity theft, fraud, or other malicious, deceptive, or illegal activities. If Microsoft Defender SmartScreen detects that content is potentially unsafe, you will see a warning in place of the content. Microsoft Defender SmartScreen can be turned on or off in the Windows Security app.

Where supported, Smart App Control helps check software that is installed and runs on your device to determine if it is malicious, potentially unwanted, or poses other threats to you and your device. On a supported device, Smart App Control starts in evaluation mode and the data we collect for Microsoft Defender SmartScreen such as file name, a hash of the file’s contents, the download location, and the file’s digital certificates, is used to help determine whether your device is a good candidate to use Smart App Control for additional security protection. Smart App Control is not enabled and will not block during evaluation mode. Some devices may not be good candidates if Smart App Control would otherwise get in the way and interfere with a user’s otherwise intended and legitimate tasks – for instance, developers who use a lot of unsigned files. If you are a good candidate for Smart App Control, then it will automatically be turned on, and will provide additional protection to your device beyond Microsoft Defender SmartScreen. Otherwise, Smart App Control will be unavailable and permanently turned off. If your device is unsupported or not a good candidate for Smart App Control, Microsoft Defender SmartScreen will continue to help protect your device. When Smart App Control is enabled and identifies an app as malicious, potentially unwanted, or unknown and unsigned, it will block and notify you prior to opening, running, or installing the app. Learn more about Smart App Control.

When either Microsoft Defender SmartScreen or Smart App Control checks a file, data about that file is sent to Microsoft, including the file name, a hash of the file’s contents, the download location, and the file’s digital certificates.

Smart App Control can be turned on or off in the Windows Security app.

Microsoft Defender Antivirus. Microsoft Defender Antivirus looks for malware and other unwanted software, potentially unwanted apps, and other malicious content on your device. Microsoft Defender Antivirus is automatically turned on to help protect your device if no other antimalware software is actively protecting your device. If Microsoft Defender Antivirus is turned on, it will monitor the security status of your device. When Microsoft Defender Antivirus is turned on, or is running because Limited Periodic Scanning is enabled, it will automatically send reports to Microsoft that contain data about suspected malware and other unwanted software, potentially unwanted apps, and other malicious content, and it may also send files that could contain malicious content, such as malware or unknown files for further inspection. If a report is likely to contain personal data, the report is not sent automatically, and you'll be prompted before it is sent. You can configure Microsoft Defender Antivirus not to send reports and suspected malware to Microsoft.

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Speech, Voice Activation, Inking, and Typing

Speech. Microsoft provides both a device-based speech recognition feature and cloud-based (online) speech recognition technologies.

Turning on the Online speech recognition setting lets apps use Microsoft cloud-based speech recognition. Additionally, in Windows 10, the Online speech recognition setting enables your ability to use dictation within Windows.

Turning on speech while setting up a HoloLens device or installing Windows Mixed Reality allows you to use your voice for commands, dictation, and app interactions. Both device-based speech recognition and online speech recognition settings will be enabled. With both settings enabled, while your headset is turned on the device will always be listening to your voice input and will send your voice data to Microsoft’s cloud-based speech recognition technologies.

When you use cloud-based speech recognition technologies from Microsoft, whether enabled by the Online speech recognition setting or when you interact with HoloLens or voice typing, Microsoft collects and uses your voice recordings to provide the speech recognition service by creating a text transcription of the spoken words in the voice data. Microsoft will not store, sample, or listen to your voice recordings without your permission. To learn more about how Microsoft manages your voice data, see Speech recognition technologies.

You can use device-based speech recognition without sending your voice data to Microsoft. However, Microsoft cloud-based speech recognition technologies provide more accurate recognition than the device-based speech recognition. When the online speech recognition setting is turned off, speech services that do not rely on the cloud and only use device-based recognition—like live captions, Narrator, or voice access—will still work and Microsoft won’t collect any voice data.

You can turn off online speech recognition at any time. This will stop any apps that rely on the Online speech recognition setting from sending your voice data to Microsoft. If you are using a HoloLens or Windows Mixed Reality headset, you can also turn off device-based speech recognition at any time. This will stop the device from listening for your voice input. Learn more about speech recognition in Windows.

Voice Activation. Windows provides supported apps with the ability to respond and take action based on voice keywords that are specific to that app.

If you’ve given permission for an app to listen for voice keywords, Windows will be actively listening to the microphone for these keywords. Once a keyword is recognised, the app will have access to your voice recording, can process the recording, take action and respond, such as with a spoken answer. The app may send the voice recording to its own services in the cloud to process the commands. Each app should ask you for permission before accessing voice recordings.

Additionally, voice activation can be enabled when the device is locked. If enabled, the relevant app will continue listening to the microphone for voice keywords when you have locked your device and can activate for anyone who speaks near the device. When the device is locked, the app will have access to the same set of capabilities and information as when the device is unlocked.

You can turn off voice activation at any time. Learn more about voice activation in Windows.

Even when you’ve turned off voice activation, some third-party desktop apps and services could still be listening to the microphone and collect your voice input. Learn more about third-party desktop apps and how they may still be able to access your microphone even with these settings turned off.

Voice typing. In Windows 11, dictation has been updated and renamed as voice typing. Voice typing may use both device-based and online speech recognition technologies to power its speech-to-text transcription service. You can also choose to contribute voice clips to help improve voice typing. If you choose not to contribute voice clips, you can still use voice typing. You can change your selection anytime in the voice typing settings. Microsoft will not store, sample, or listen to your voice recordings without your permission. Learn more about Microsoft and your voice data.

Voice access. Windows enables everyone, including people with mobility disabilities, to control their PC and author text using their voice. For example, voice access supports scenarios such as opening and switching between apps, browsing the web and reading and authoring email. Voice access leverages modern, on-device speech recognition to accurately recognise speech and is supported without an internet connection. When a user invokes voice access it uses the device microphone. Learn more about voice access.

Inking & Typing Personalisation. Your typed and handwritten words are collected to provide you with a customised word list, better character recognition to help you type and write on your device, and text suggestions that appear as you type or write.

You can turn off inking & typing personalisation at any time. This will delete your customer word list stored on your device. If you turn it back on, you’ll need to recreate your customised word list. Learn more about inking & typing personalisation in Windows.

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Sync and backup settings

When you sign into Windows with your Microsoft account or work or school account, Windows can store your settings, files, and device configuration data in Microsoft’s servers. Windows will only use the stored settings, files, and device configuration data to make it easier for you to migrate your experience on a different device.

You can turn off this feature and stop Windows from storing your settings, files, and configuration data from the Windows settings. You can delete the data that has been backed up previously to your Microsoft account, by visiting your Microsoft Account Devices page.

Learn more about Windows back up and sync settings.

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Update Services

Update Services for Windows includes Windows Update and Microsoft Update. Windows Update is a service that provides you with software updates for Windows software and other supporting software, such as drivers and firmware supplied by device manufacturers. Microsoft Update is a service that provides you with software updates for other Microsoft software such as Microsoft 365.

Windows Update automatically downloads Windows software updates to your device. You can configure Windows Update to automatically install these updates as they become available (recommended) or have Windows notify you when a restart is required to finish installing updates. Apps available through the Microsoft Store are automatically updated through the Microsoft Store, as described in the Microsoft Store section of this privacy statement.

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Web browsers—Microsoft Edge Legacy and Internet Explorer

This section applies to legacy versions of Microsoft Edge (versions 44 and below). See the Microsoft Edge section of the Privacy Statement for information about non-legacy versions of Microsoft Edge.

Microsoft Edge is the default web browser for Windows. Internet Explorer, the legacy browser from Microsoft, is also available in Windows. Whenever you use a web browser to access the internet, data about your device ("standard device data") is sent to the websites you visit and online services you use. Standard device data includes your device's IP address, browser type and language, access times, and referring website addresses. This data might be logged on those websites' web servers. Which data is logged and how that data is used depends on the privacy practices of the websites you visit and web services you use. Additionally, Microsoft Edge sends a unique browser ID to certain websites to enable us to develop aggregate data used to improve browser features and services.

Additionally, data about how you use your browser, such as your browsing history, web form data, temporary internet files, and cookies, is stored on your device. You can delete this data from your device using Delete Browsing History.

Microsoft Edge allows you to capture and save content on your device, such as:

Some Microsoft browser information saved on your device will be synced across other devices when you sign in with your Microsoft account so you can access your data on all your signed-in browsers across your devices. For instance, in Internet Explorer, this information includes your browsing history and favourites; and in Microsoft Edge, it includes your favourites, reading lists, autofill form entries (such as your name, address and phone number) and may include data for extensions that you have installed. As an example, if you sync your Microsoft Edge reading list across devices, copies of the content you choose to save to your reading list will be sent to each synced device for later viewing. You can disable syncing in Internet Explorer by going to Start > Settings > Accounts > Sync your settings. (For more information, see the Sync settings section of this privacy statement.) You can also disable syncing of Microsoft Edge browser information by turning off the sync option in Microsoft Edge Settings.

Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer use your search queries and browsing history to provide you with faster browsing and more relevant search results. These features include:

You can turn off these features at any time. In order to provide search results, Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer send your search queries, standard device information, and location (if you have location enabled) to your default search provider when the app is used. If Bing is your default search provider, we use this data as described in the Bing section of this privacy statement.

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Windows apps

A number of Microsoft apps are included with Windows and others are available in Microsoft Store. Some of those apps include:

Maps app. The Maps app provides location-based services and uses Bing services to process your searches within the Maps app. When the Maps app has access to your location, and you have enabled location-based services in Windows, when you use the “@” key to initiate a search in supported text boxes in Windows apps, Bing services collects the text you type after the “@” key to provide location-based suggestions. To learn more about these Bing-powered experiences, see the Bing section of this privacy statement. When the Maps app has access to your location, even when the app is not in use, Microsoft may collect de-identified location data from your device to improve Microsoft services. You can disable the Maps app's access to your location by turning off the location service or turning off the Maps app's access to the location service.

You can keep track of your favorite places and recent map searches in the Maps app. Your favorite places and search history will be included as search suggestions. If you grant the Maps app access to your camera, you’ll be able to capture the location of where your photos took place – for instance, a photo of your car will also tell you where your car is parked. You can also share your location with other people in your contacts. If you're signed in with your Microsoft account, your favorite places, search history, and certain app settings will be synced across other devices and services. For more information, see the Sync and back up settings section of this privacy statement.

Camera app. If you allow the Camera app to use your location, location data is embedded in the photos and videos you take with your device. Other descriptive data, such as camera model and the date that the picture or video was taken, is also embedded in photos and videos. If you choose to share a photo or video, any embedded data will be accessible to the people and services you share with. Once enabled, you can always disable the Camera app's access to your location by turning off all access to the location service in your device's Settings menu or turning off the Camera app's access to the location service.

When the Camera app is open, it shows rectangles detected by the selected camera for areas in the image that are potentially used for image enhancement. The Camera app does not retain any image enhancing data. You can always change your camera access settings in the Windows Settings menu. The Camera app uses various device capabilities such as location, camera, microphone, video, and picture library. Please visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

Photos app. There are two versions of the Photos app available. The updated Photos app includes features like iCloud integration and local and cloud folder views. The previous legacy version of the Photos app includes features like Video Editor, the People tab, and Albums. You are using the updated Photos app if the “About” section in the Photos app settings indicates the app is the “Updated” Photos app. In some cases, a user may have both the updated Photos app and the Photos legacy version downloaded on their device.

The updated Photos app helps you organise, view and share your photos and videos. For example, the Photos app presents different ways to group photos and videos by name, date taken, or date modified, and also in folders where those files are stored, such as stored locally on your device or synced to your device from OneDrive, iCloud, and other cloud services. The app also allows you to move, copy or upload files to different locations on your computer or to OneDrive. The All Photos tab displays your locally stored or synced photos and videos according to the date they are taken. The Favourites tab lets you view photos and videos that you have previously liked or favourited. The Folders tab allows you to view photos or videos by their storage location. There are also tabs where you can see your photos and videos from available cloud services (such as OneDrive and other third-party services) that you have synced to your device.

The Photos legacy app also helps you organise, view and share your photos and videos. However, if you are using the Photos legacy app, you may see other features that are not available in the newer version of the Photos app, including Collections, Albums, Video Editor and the People setting. The Collection tab displays photos and videos according to the date they are taken. The Albums tab helps you organise your photos and videos by location and common tags. The Video Editor allows you to edit, create, and share videos.

The People setting can be enabled on the Photos legacy app's Settings page and in the People tab of the app. When enabled, the Photos legacy app will use face grouping technology to organise your photos and videos into groups. The grouping feature can detect faces in a photo or video and determine whether they are visually similar to faces in other photos and videos in your local photo collection. You can choose to associate a facial grouping with a contact from your People app.

When enabled in the Photos legacy app, your groupings will be stored on your device for as long as you choose to keep the groupings or the photos or videos. If the People setting is turned on, there will be a prompt to allow the Photos legacy app to continue to permit facial groupings after three years of non-interaction with the Photos legacy app. At any time, you can go to the Settings page in the Photos legacy app to turn the People setting on or off. Turning the feature off will remove facial grouping data from the Photos legacy app but will not remove your photos or videos. Learn more about the Photos legacy app and facial grouping.

If you choose to share a photo or video using the Photos app or the Photos legacy app, any embedded data (such as location, camera model, and date) will be accessible to the people and services you share the photo or video with.

People app. The People app lets you see and interact with all your contacts in one place. When you add an account to the People app, your contacts from your account will be automatically added to the People app. You can add other accounts to the People app, including your social networks (such as Facebook and Twitter) and email accounts. When you add an account, we tell you what data the People app can import or sync with the particular service and let you choose what you want to add. Other apps you install may also sync data to the People app, including providing additional details to existing contacts. When you view a contact in the People app, information about your recent interactions with the contact (such as emails and calendar events, including from apps that the People app syncs data from) will be retrieved and displayed to you. You can remove an account from the People app at any time.

Mail and Calendar app. The Mail and Calendar app allows you to connect all your email, calendars and files in one place, including those from third-party email and file storage providers. The app provides location-based services, such as weather information in your calendar, but you can disable the app’s use of your location. When you add an account to the Mail and Calendar app, your email, calendar items, files, contacts and other settings from your account will automatically sync to your device and to Microsoft servers. At any time, you can remove an account or make changes to the data that’s synced from your account. To configure an account, you must provide the app with the account credentials (such as username and password), which will be sent over the internet to the third-party provider’s server. The app will first attempt to use a secure (SSL) connection to configure your account but will send this information unencrypted if your email provider does not support SSL. If you add an account provided by an organisation (such as a company email address), the owner of the organisational domain can implement certain policies and controls (for example, multi-factor authentication or the ability to remotely wipe data from your device) that may affect your use of the app. This app uses your device capabilities such as location, camera. Please visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

Windows Operator Messages (previously Microsoft Messaging) app. The Windows Operator Messages app receives and shows account-related SMS texts from your mobile operator about your data plan (such as your billing and data limits) on your PC or device. These messages are stored locally on your device. From your device, you can also access, view, and delete these messages. This app uses your device capabilities such as Contacts. Please visit Microsoft Store on Windows to learn more.

The Clock app is your hub for time management and focus on Windows. When users sign in with their Microsoft account they can enable Microsoft To Do which is a cloud connected experience. When the user turns on Focus Session, session data is stored locally and user can clear it by going to the clock settings page. Additionally, Focus Sessions supports connecting to Spotify accounts to listen to ambient audio to help users focus. Visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

Microsoft Journal is a Windows application specifically designed for touch-focused, pen-capable devices such as tablets and 2-in-1 devices. It provides users with freeform personal note-taking experience. The app leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to better recognise your handwriting that processes data locally on your device. When connected to Microsoft 365 (subscription required), users can seamlessly access their M365 calendar and contacts within the app. All user created content is automatically saved at the default save location in the document library for future reference. Journal lets you access photos library and the device camera and microphone so that you can add them to a workbook. Learn about Journal app here or visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

The Mobile plans app helps you get online easily and in more places on your Windows 10 PC and 11 LTE devices. Upon signing up for a data plan on your device, it establishes a connection with the mobile operator, enabling you to complete purchases through the mobile operator’s online portal. You will need a supported SIM card in order to use this app. The Mobile Plan App will use your IMEI, IMSI, EID, ICCID and Country (coarse location determined by Mobile Network ID or WiFi Reverse IP) to determine which mobile operators are available in your area. The mobile operator may send notifications to users through the Mobile Plans App. This app uses your device’s capabilities such as its camera and microphone. Visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

Microsoft PC Manager is available in select regions and is a desktop tool aimed at boosting your PC’s performance. Based on your request, PC Manager will scan your device, and allows you to delete unneeded or temporary documents, optimise cache, stop or recover from unauthorised changes, or use other features such as health check, one-click boost, storage clean-up, file and pop-up management, and protection of your default settings.

PC Manager will block pop-ups based on ad-block rules and the pop-up windows selected by you through customised block. If you agree to join the “Microsoft PC Manager Pop-up Plan”, you can help us optimise the pop-up management feature of Microsoft PC Manager by taking screenshots of the pop-up and sending them to Microsoft when you block pop-up windows using customised block. Microsoft does not collect information other than screenshots, Windows title, and the class of Windows. Screenshots sent are only retained for a short period of time and regularly deleted. You can manage your Pop-Up Plan preferences through the PC Manager settings at anytime. The feedback feature in PC Manager may also process personal data if you include it in the feedback you provide to Microsoft. The feedback from users is regularly deleted after processing. Visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

The Snipping Tool is a handy utility in Windows that uses your microphone and pictures library to capture and store screenshots and screen recordings. The Snipping Tool includes a Text Action feature, which uses built-in optical character recognition (OCR) support. You can select and copy text directly from images using OCR. Additionally, you can use the Text Action feature to redact sensitive information from captured text. With clipboard integration items copied from the Snipping Tool are also copied to your clipboard. If you enable clipboard history across devices, the copied content can be used seamlessly across different devices. Users can manage their clipboard and snipping preferences through the Windows settings. Visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

The Sound Recorder app is a versatile tool designed for capturing audio via your microphone in various scenarios. While recording, you can mark key moments to easily locate important sections later. You can also trim, adjust volume levels, or apply other modifications as needed, and playback your recordings. Your recordings are autosaved and stored in your Documents folder for easy access, and you can share your recorded audio with friends and family. Visit Microsoft Store to learn more.

Microsoft Clipchamp is a video editor designed to make video creation easy. It allows users to combine videos, images, and audio files, as well as add text and effects, and then save the finished video to their device, or store their videos in their personal OneDrive via their Microsoft account. Users can also add stock videos and stock music or sound effects, stickers, graphical elements, backgrounds, and more. Users can choose to allow Clipchamp to access their camera and microphone to record videos directly from their device. To provide a better experience, such as which language to display to you, Clipchamp will collect your imprecise location. Users can access Clipchamp with a personal or family Microsoft account via the Clipchamp app for Windows 10 or Windows 11 and in the Edge or Chrome browser at https://app.clipchamp.com.

Media Player is the default built-in player of multimedia (audio and video) files. When you choose to open a multimedia file, Media Player will read the contents of that file. When you open Media Player, it will read the contents of your Music library and Video library folders to populate its own Music library and Video library pages inside the Media Player to help you organise, view and play multimedia content.

To enrich your experience when playing music, Media Player will automatically attempt to display artist art and album art for the content you play and the content in your music library. To provide this information, Media Player sends an information request to Microsoft containing standard device data, such as your device IP address, device software version, your regional and language settings, and an identifier for the content. If desired, this feature can be disabled on the app’s Settings page.

Movies and TV. Microsoft Movies & TV allows you to rent or buy movies and TV episodes, and play them on your device.

To help you discover content that may interest you, Movies & TV will collect data about what movies and TV shows you watch, including the length of play and any ratings you give.

Movies & TV can also display and play local video files stored on your PC. To do this, it needs access to the video library on your device.

Windows Media Player Legacy. When you use Windows Media Player Legacy, it can read media content such as video, audio, and picture files which allows you to play CDs and other digital content (such as video and audio files), rip CDs, and manage your media library. To enrich your experience when you play content in your library, Windows Media Player Legacy displays related media information, such as album title, song titles, album art, artist, and composer. To augment your media information, Windows Media Player Legacy will send a request to Microsoft which contains standard computer information, an identifier for the media content, and the media information already contained in your Windows Media Player Legacy library (including information you may have edited or entered yourself) so that Microsoft can recognise the track and then return additional information that is available.

Windows Media Player Legacy also allows you to play back content that is streamed to you over a network. To provide this service, it is necessary for Windows Media Player Legacy to communicate with a streaming media server. These servers are typically operated by non-Microsoft content providers. During playback of streaming media, Windows Media Player Legacy will send a log to the streaming media server or other web server(s) if the streaming media server requests it. The log includes such details as: connection time, IP address, operating system version, Windows Media Player Legacy version, Player identification number (Player ID), date, and protocol. To protect your privacy, Windows Media Player Legacy defaults to sending a Player ID that is different for each session.

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Windows Hello

Windows Hello provides instant access to your devices through biometric authentication. If you turn it on, Windows Hello uses your face, fingerprint, or iris to identify you based on a set of unique points or features that are extracted from the image and stored on your device as a template—but it does not store the actual image of your face, fingerprint, or iris. Biometric verification data that's used when you sign in doesn't leave your device. Your biometric verification data will remain on your device until you remove it. However, after a significant period of Windows Hello inactivity, you will be prompted to confirm that you want to continue to store your biometric verification data. You can delete your biometric verification data from within Settings. Learn more about Windows Hello.

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Windows Search lets you search your stuff and the web from one place. If you choose to use Windows Search to search "your stuff," it will provide results for items on your personal OneDrive, your OneDrive for Business if so enabled, other cloud storage providers to the extent supported by those third-party providers, and on your device. If you choose to use Windows Search to search the web, or get search suggestions with Windows Search, your search results will be powered by Bing and we will use your search query as described in the Bing section of this privacy statement. Learn more about search in Windows.