7 ways Windows 11 collects your data

As of 2024, Windows now collects more data about you than ever before, and it’s a real point of concern for privacy enthuasists.

It’s not just that the recently announced Recall feature is a privacy nightmare, but Windows 11 is already collecting all kinds of data as far as what you’re doing, what you’re using, and more. Some of it’s necessary for the main system to function, but not all of it is.

Fortunately, a lot of Windows 11’s data collection is optional. You can decline the tracking during initial setup, or turn most of it off after the fact—even if Microsoft is making it more difficult to do.

Here are all of the ways Windows 11 collects your data and how you can opt out of each one (when possible).

Required data collected

Microsoft classifies some data collection as “required,” claiming that this data is necessary to keep Windows running effectively, up-to-date, and secure against various threats.

This data includes basic details like the model of your device running Windows, the hardware components in your system, and diagnostic data when catastrophic system failures occur.

For diagnostics, Microsoft reportedly collects basic error reporting data, such as whether a Windows update was applied successfully and whether the operating system is working as intended. It also collects the version and build of Windows you’re running, plus any optional installations you’ve applied, plus all the apps and services you have installed.

You can’t opt out of any of the above, but everything below is (mostly) optional. For a more detailed look at the required data gathered by Microsoft, see this Microsoft Learn article.

Optional data collected

As we dive into optional data collected, one thing to note: certain Windows 11 apps and services require the collection of certain data, but the apps and services themselves can be disabled. In that sense, I’m considering this data to be “optional.”

Here are the optional data points collected by Windows 11 and how you can opt out of each one. For an exhaustive breakdown of the data, Microsoft goes into extreme detail here.