Windows Telemetry Rolls Out

ihtoit writes: Last week came the warning, now comes the roll out. One of the most most controversial aspects of Windows 10 is coming to Windows 7 and 8. Microsoft has released upgrades which enable the company to track what a user is doing. The updates – KB3075249, KB3080149 and KB3068708 – all add "customer experience and diagnostic telemetry" to the older versions. gHacks points out that the updates will ignore any previous user preferences reporting: "These four updates ignore existing user preferences stored in Windows 7 and Windows 8 (including any edits made to the Hosts file) and immediately starts exchanging user data with vortex-win.data.microsoft.com and settings-win.data.microsoft.com."

Comments

Oh, they're a big company,

[jpellino]

surely they know what they're doing and it's all for a better customer experience.

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Teckla]

surely they know what they're doing and it's all for a better customer experience.

Oh, absolutely! Windows 10 is great!

So far, Windows 10 has reminded me repeatedly that I should: (1) Consider getting Office 365! (2) Consider installing Skype! (3) Should collect and use Bing Rewards! (4) That I should look into getting an Xbox! (5) That I should buy things from the Microsoft Store!

If I didn't like to play PC games, I'd have gotten a Mac instead. Microsoft is displaying some of the most ballsy behavior I've seen since the 1990's. The outright obnoxious behavior and contempt they're showing for their users astonishes me. I feel like the old anti-competitive, monopolistic Microsoft is back.

So much for Windows 10 being a good release. *sigh*

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Anonymous Coward]

7 was good. 8 was crap. they skipped 9. the 'good' version we should have had and went right to 10. which is crap.

the pattern still holds and will not be fooled by the numbers.

so now we have to wait for 11. but there won't be an 11. just forever updates to 10 sticking that windows store deeper into your ass.

Re: Oh, they're a big company,

[Teckla]

Citations or screenshots please. I have Win10 on three PCs I use all the time and have not seen any of the bs you're talking about.

You're lucky. For those not so lucky, they can Google how to disable some of the bad behaviors.

As a freebie, here's how you disable the Office 365 advertising in Windows 10:

Start > Settings > System > Notifications & actions > Scroll down to "Show notifications from these apps" > Get Office > Off.

Microsoft knows non-technical people aren't likely to find and disable this kind of obnoxious behavior, so they'll be stuck with obnoxious "Get Office 365!" notifications forever. As well as the other things I mentioned.

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Anonymous Coward]

No kidding. Windows 10 is basically taking a page right from Microsoft's 1990s playbook and then amping it up to eleven. It is a blatant attempt by MS to leverage Windows to try to lock people into their other software and services, all of which except for XBox would be rightfully be abysmal marketplace failures.

- Attempting to force excrement like Cortana, their "cloud" service crap, the shitty Windows store, subscriptions, etc. down user's throats by basically attempting to tie them into the OS.
- For good measure, rename what should really just be called Internet Explorer 12 into Edge, and act like people won't notice.
- Spyware ingrained into the OS on every level, and sticking basically advertisement shit right onto the miniaturized start screen that they are trying to pass off as a start menu.
- Holding DirectX 12 hostage, because most power users would otherwise not bother upgrading from Windows 7. Then basically backporting the Spyware into Windows 7 in an attempt to get the holdouts to say "I may as well upgrade since they're spying on me anyway.

This is the same shit that almost got MS broken up in 2000. They should have been broken up then, had justice actually been done. The United States no longer has the cojones to go after Microsoft again, but I hope that the EU catches on and smacks MS down hard for this. Not holding my breath though.

Re: Oh, they're a big company,

[Anonymous Coward]

Start > Settings > System > Notifications & actions > Scroll down to "Show notifications from these apps" > Get Office > Off.

The real issue isn't so much the telemetry, it's: "Why is there a 'Get Office' app in my OS anyways?"

Let's call it what it is: when it was "Get Bonzi Buddy" or "Install The Ask Jeeves Toolbar!" it was malware. The "Get Office" app is also malware, and the people who designed it, developed it, and ordered its incorporation into the OS should all be shunned.

Re: Oh, they're a big company,

[sjames]

Google "Get Office Notifications" and you'll see that plenty of people ARE getting those notifications. Perhaps you have a different edition or missed an update.

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Harlequin80]

I know this is stupid. But one of the things I don't like about Windows 10 is how it talks to me. Christ I must be getting old but I HATE the fake "I'm trying to talk to you like a friend" language that seems to pervade the system.

One that actually made my blood boil was the "restart needed due to updates" language. I'm paraphrasing here but it was something like "Hi, I need to schedule a restart of windows to complete the upgrade. I was think about a time you don't really seem to use your computer much. How does 3am sound?"

I obviously have some wiring wrong but that just annoys me so so much.

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Anonymous Coward]

Pretty sure the commentor is talking about the live tiles that are installed and active by default. I didn't take kindly to tiles showing me Justin Beiber tweets and Candy Crush Saga.

Re: Oh, they're a big company,

[Parafilmus]

Citations or screenshots please. I have Win10 on three PCs I use all the time and have not seen any of the bs you're talking about.

Is three citations enough? Or do you require more?

http://www.pcworld.com/article...

http://www.howtogeek.com/22632...

http://www.addictivetips.com/w...

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Sarten-X]

Nope.

I installed the pro edition via the upgrade offer from Win7. I got the "Get Office" app preinstalled, and it periodically advertises Office 365.

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Harlequin80]

I'm not even sure it is particularly condescending as it is overly familiar / fake. It is also the pretending my machine is a person.....

Actually I just went and found the exact wording. "We'll schedule a restart during a time you usually don't use your device (right now 3:30 AM tomorrow looks good)."

Firstly, who the fuck is we? Is this like the royal We? Or does the fact that my computer has a multi-core cpu now mean that it has multiple personas inside that need to agree and they are on a par with humans?

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[cfalcon]

The fact that someone, somewhere, sucks worse is not a defense. Also, no other company is:
1- As far reaching.
2- Trusted with as many DESKTOP (read, vastly more important than "some webapp" or "some phone") hardwarez.

Microsoft doing this is vastly worse than when other companies do it. Especially because almost everyone bitching about this actually uses Windows to at least some degree, and often doesn't use the other things, or carefully monitors their exposure to them. No safe computing will save you from a malicious OS.

Re: Oh, they're a big company,

[cfalcon]

> Citations or screenshots please.

Fuck off citation-needer AC shill. It is well documented that these things are an absolute shit parade. At this point, the burden of proof is on any apologists.

But, here's some articles, shillfuck!

The lockscreen assault...
http://www.extremetech.com/com...
http://www.theverge.com/2015/4...

OP claimed that he's getting advertised Office. You claim he needs proof. While this debate rages, here's tutorial on how to make Microsoft STOP advertising Office. Which, of fucking COURSE it does.

http://www.howtogeek.com/22632...

Presumably, the "Get Skype" app is the one to disable to stop the Skype stuff he complains about.

Oh, and if you NEED Skype, here's how to disable ads in Skype. Uh, this worked a year ago? I don't know if it is current.
http://community.skype.com/t5/...

Shills shilling, shills shilling, shills shilling.....

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[MrL0G1C]

Firstly, who the fuck is we? Is this like the royal We?

Microsoft and the NSA ;-)

Re:Oh, they're a big company,

[Evtim]

There was an old joke from communist times.

"Why do we need two layer toilet paper?"
"One layer for you , the other for the KGB archive"

After the changes

"The toilet paper now has 3 layers!"
"It's for your comfort and the extra copy for the NSA archive"

Run for the Penguin

[fluffernutter]

I'm going Linux as soon as I have a chance. Currently enjoying Linux Mint /w Cinnamon for general use.

Re:Fuck Microsoft

[amiga3D]

No, Microsoft Fucks you!

... and Windows becomes less and less helpful

[QuietLagoon]

The more data harvesting Microsoft performs, the less helpful for me Windows becomes.

.
I have a notebook that is used mainly for web browsing and email. Linux Mint was installed on that notebook (replacing Windows 7) over this past weekend.

It's been a couple of years since I had looked into Linux Mint, and I was very surprised at how far it has come. While I foresee the need to do a few more tweaks with Linux Mint in order to make it more comfortable, I see no need to revert to Windows on this notebook.

What really pissed me off about the data harvesting that Microsoft is doing with these updates is how Microsoft callously has ignored any wishes I had previously stated regarding my preferences for not harvesting data from my computers.

Re:... and Windows becomes less and less helpful

[Anonymous Coward]

What really pissed me off about the data harvesting that Microsoft is doing with these updates is how Microsoft callously has ignored any wishes I had previously stated regarding my preferences for not harvesting data from my computers.

> "This package updates the Diagnostics and Telemetry tracking service to existing devices. This service provides benefits from the latest version of Windows to systems that have not yet upgraded."

Please, Microsoft, explain the benefits that are provided. You want to know why some of us wear tinfoil? Because words like "experience," "benefits," and "improvements" have been twisted into precisely the opposite of what they used to mean.

> Included in this update: ...Reduces the network connections on a Windows system that doesnâ(TM)t participate in the Customer Experience Improvement Program (CEIP).

If the customer has opted out, not one motherfucking byte should be transmitted. Not even the DNS query for the telemetry servers. What part of THE USER HAS OPTED OUT does Nadella not understand?

And just to amplify that "not one motherfucking byte" concept -- NSA doesn't give a shit about what I fap to, PLA doesn't give a shit about my 8-bit microcomputer geeking, and FSB doesn't give a shit that I think Putin is a dick -- the point remains that even things as innocuous as error reporting have been, and will continue to be, used as attack vectors by state-sponsored actors.

The user must, at all times, be able to make the tradeoff between usability and security, because once again, Microsoft has erred.

Re:Time to switch to Linux...

[arth1]

There will be new "updates" from Microsoft, so, no, unless you go examine every update thoroughly in a VM or something before installing, or stay at your current patch level forever, you're not safe.

My question is how much of this is Microsoft's own idea and how much is being pushed by NSA. Windows 10 consumer versions not having the ability to turn off automatic updates, for example, seems like it's tailor made for the three letter agencies to use to install "special" updates on targeted computers - quite possibly those that show specific files or keywords in "telemetry" searches.

Backing away from Microsoft seems sensible, but it's not going to solve the problem of a police state with panopticon wet dreams.

Info from the actual article

[Golden_Rider]

I know, I am crazy, I actually READ the article. And this info is in there:

Now they have been launched the positive news is KB3075249 and KB3080149 have been classed as ‘Optional’ in Windows Update. This means they won’t install without Windows 7 and Windows 8 users giving them express permission to do so (a key difference to Windows 10).

On the flip side KB3068708 is classified as ‘Recommended’ which means Windows 7 and Windows 8 PCs with Windows Update set to automatic will install it by default. That said for the update to appear in the first place you will need to be a participant in Microsoft’s Customer Experience Improvement Program, an opt-in program which already has you agreeing to send user data to the company.

Re:Firewall

[chill]

Yup. Or as hosts entries in your router, assuming it serves DNS up.

The article says they ignore /etc/hosts, but that is on the Windows PC itself. A wifi router running dd-wrt and using dnsmasq reads the hosts file of the router before passing queries on up the chain.

Go to the Administrative tab, then the Commands sub-tab and enter:

echo "127.0.0.2 vortex-win.data.microsoft.com settings-win.data.microsoft.com" >> /etc/hosts

Then run the command. Of course, this is assuming your DNS entries on your PCs are set to your local router and not something else like Google's DNS or your ISP's DNS.

Very easy to get rid of... apk

[Anonymous Coward]

IMPORTANT ONE IS GROUP POLICY (gpedit.msc):

Go to Computer Configuration, Administrative Templates, System
Internet Communication Management, Internet Communication Settings

ENABLE (to turn it on, it is a disabler)

"Turn off Windows Customer Experience Improvement Program"

---

TO REMOVE THE BOGUS OPTIONAL TELEMETRY HOTFIXES MANUALLY:

Open command prompt
Type powershell
issue these commands

---

TO SEE WHAT ONES ARE INSTALLED:

get-hotfix -id KB3035583, KB2952664,KB2976978,KB3021917,KB3044374,KB2990214

---

TO UNINSTALL THEM (these for sure, per url next below):

wusa /uninstall /kb:3035583
wusa /uninstall /kb:2952664
wusa /uninstall /kb:2976978
wusa /uninstall /kb:3021917
wusa /uninstall /kb:3044374
wusa /uninstall /kb:2990214

per http://www.ghacks.net/2015/04/...

---

DESCRIPTIONS OF EACH (these uninstalled properly):

KB3068708 (Telemetry)
KB3075249 (Telemetry)
KB3080149 (Telemetry)

KB3022345 (Telemetry)
KB2977759 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparation)
KB3021917 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparatioon + Telemetry)
KB3035583 (Windows 10 upgrade preparation)

---

I GOT "NOT INSTALLED ON THIS COMPUTER" ON THESE INITIALLY SINCE I HAD IE11 installed (PROBABLY ONES FOR IE9/10/11):

KB3075249
KB3080149
KB2505438
* KB2670838 (See IE 9/10/11 notes below)
KB3044374
KB2990214 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparation)
KB2505438 (Although it claims to fix performance issues, it often breaks fonts)
KB2976978 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparation)

---

I GOT "NOT INSTALLED ON THIS COMPUTER" ON THESE (*PRIOR* TO PULLING KB2670838 which is IE 11):

* KB2670838 (This update often breaks AERO on Windows 7 and makes some fonts on websites fuzzy. A Windows 7 specific update only
                        (do not install IE10 or 11 otherwise it will be bundled with them, IE9 is the max version you should install to avoid this).

THESE RE-APPEAR AFTER UNINSTALLING IE11 RIGHT ON RESTARTING & CHECKING WINDOWS UPDATE:

* KB2952664 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparation prior to IE9/10/11 install)
* KB3021917 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparation prior to IE9/10/11 install)
* KB3068708 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparation prior to IE9/10/11 install)
* KB3092627 (Windows 10 Upgrade preparation prior to IE9/10/11 install)

---

run cmd as administrator

sc stop Diagtrack
sc delete Diagtrack

---

*Task Scheduler Library:

Everything under "Application Experience"
Everything under "Autochk"
Everything under "Customer Experience Improvement Program"
Under "Disk Diagnostic" only the "Microsoft-Windows-DiskDiagnosticDataCollector"
Under "Maintenance" "WinSAT"
"Media Center" and click the "status" column, then select all non-disabled entries and disable them.

*services.msc:

"Remote Registry" to "Disabled" instead of "Manual".

APK

P.S.=> And "There ya go"... apk

Re:Very easy to get rid of... apk

[Anonymous Coward]

So much for the (bogus) argument that Linux is harder to install and maintain; that Linux requires too much command line work to get it working.

Foreign Windows Version

[PPH]

There will be one, right? Or will Microsoft's executives risk arrest and charges of espionage when they travel overseas?

Microsoft Care

[FrostedWheat]

Microsoft used to just hate Mac and Linux users. Good to see they're expanding that to Windows users too, they where beginning to feel left out.

Re:Suicide

[fluffernutter]

Because the wall around the garden prevents me from doing what I want to do with a computer. That is worse then reporting what I'm doing any day.

Re:Firewall

[epyT-R]

Your options are limited if you can't trust the network stack in the OS to do your bidding. One relatively safe way might be to block direct connectivity at the router and set up a secure proxy on the lan for use by non-microsoft browsers and anything else that needs connectivity. Windows won't have direct net access but firefox will work fine. Of course, this would require the rest of your networked software to support the secure proxy as well (most games don't for instance).

Otherwise, the dns and ip blocks could be defeated at any time with new updates regardless if done in etc/hosts or on the router.

Telemetry co-opted by malware

[Knightman]

I'm just waiting for the first malware that will co-opt all the telemetry to spy on users...