After initial public outcry over lack of privacy features in Windows 10, the Redmond software maker has been trying to offer better security and privacy controls in its desktop operating system. With the Windows 10 Creators Update that was released earlier this year, the company introduced new privacy controls and made some visible during the setup process. As we have seen in a poll shared here on Wccftech, not many of you noticed these toggles and since they were turned off by default, many Windows 10 users were unwittingly giving Microsoft more data than they actually liked to.
The company's next version of Windows 10 is coming next month. Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, among other features and improvements, is also bringing more privacy controls. Again, many users may not opt to use these controls, it is a positive sign that the Windows maker is trying to be more forthcoming about its data collection practices and giving users more controls, as well.
Once of these privacy tweaks coming on October 17th with the upcoming Windows 10 version is the privacy statement that will now be shown during the setup process. For each privacy setting, there will be a "learn more" button to help those interested better understand the settings in flash cards instead of going through the full privacy statement.
In its blog post published today, the company has also revealed another nifty feature. Currently, Windows 10 users receive prompts when an app tries to use location information. With the Fall Creators Update, users will see similar prompts when an app tries to access camera, microphone, calendar, contacts, and more such controls. This will work similar to how mobile operating systems treat app controls.
"Keep in mind this will only go into effect for Windows Store apps, and only applies to those you install after the Fall Creators Update is installed," Marisa Rogers, WDG Privacy Officer added. You will be able to review and manage your existing app permissions from Start > Settings > Privacy.
All in all, these are some pretty good controls that will help users not only learn more about privacy controls but also give them more control over what tools and services apps can have access to.
For the Enterprise customers, the company is also introducing more control over which data is shared with Microsoft. "In addition to the above enhancements, we’re also providing a new setting that limits diagnostic data to the minimum required for Windows Analytics," Microsoft promised.
