Microsoft has often been accused of collecting too much data with the newer versions of Windows, and a new video now seems to confirm those concerns. Windows remains the most popular consumer desktop platform by far, ahead of macOS, Linux, and ChromeOS. According to Statcounter, three out of four computers ran Windows as of Jan. 2023, way ahead of macOS, which is found on 15 percent of desktops and laptops. In terms of versions, Windows 10 is the most popular, accounting for 68 percent of all Windows installations, while Windows 11 is the second most popular, with 18 percent.
According to a recent YouTube video from The PC Security Channel, Windows 11 connects to a ton of Microsoft and third-party servers right out the box. The connections happen without the installation of any apps, and without any permission from the user. To demonstrate the worrisome behavior, the channel used Wireshark, the industry-standard network protocol analyzer that allows users to see and record what's happening on a network. As can be seen from the video, a freshly-installed copy of Windows 11 started connecting to a ton of servers the moment it was hooked up to the internet.
Windows Telemetry Is A Cause For Concern
Many of the sites the system was connecting to are unrelated to the functioning of a standard desktop operating system. That includes the likes of Google, Akamai, Digicert, McAfee, MSN, Bing, and more. The PC was also connecting to an ad research network called Scorecard Research and a data management company called OneTrust, among other questionable websites. This is in addition to the Microsoft Update website that the PC connected to without prompts from the user. As explained by the video, all these connections are made automatically by a fresh copy of Windows 11, without the user opening their browser, installing an app or connecting to any service.
The video also compares the Windows 11 network traffic with that of Windows XP, which only connects to a couple of official Windows update servers, possibly to check for available updates. It doesn't even connect to any other Microsoft server, much less third-party servers, such as Google. Of course, Windows 11 is a much more advanced and modern operating system with more services running on it, but that still doesn't explain why it needs to connect to dozens of unrelated servers, especially from third-parties.
Privacy activists have often raised questions about Windows telemetry, especially with the two most recent versions of Windows. Some have even accused Windows 11 of being glorified spyware for collecting private data unrelated to the functioning of a PC operating system. While a quick Wireshark analysis is not enough to reach a conclusive verdict on Windows 11 and its data collection practices, it does show how much things have changed since the days of Windows XP.
Source: The PC Security Channel/YouTube