Photo credit: arstechnica.com
Security and privacy experts are preparing for renewed concerns regarding Recall, an artificial intelligence tool set to debut in Windows 11. This feature is designed to capture and archive user activity in three-second intervals through screenshots.
Initially unveiled in May 2024, Recall faced intense criticism from security professionals who pointed out that it could pose severe risks if accessed by malicious actors, including insiders or cybercriminals, who could exploit any administrative access to a Windows device. Privacy advocates also raised alarms about the potential misuse of Recall in scenarios involving intimate partner violence, emphasizing that the tool could inadvertently store sensitive messages or files transmitted via privacy-centric applications like Signal.
A New Era of Data Concerns
In response to the significant backlash, Microsoft put a halt to the rollout of Recall. However, on Thursday, the company announced its plans to reintroduce the feature. As of now, Recall is available only to users with the Windows 11 Build 26100.3902 preview version, with broader access anticipated over time. Microsoft described Recall’s functionality:
“Recall (preview)* saves you time by offering an entirely new way to search for things you’ve seen or done on your PC securely. With the AI capabilities of Copilot+ PCs, it’s now possible to quickly find and get back to any app, website, image, or document just by describing its content. To use Recall, you will need to opt-in to saving snapshots, which are images of your activity, and enroll in Windows Hello to confirm your presence so only you can access your snapshots. You are always in control of what snapshots are saved and can pause saving snapshots at any time. As you use your Copilot+ PC throughout the day working on documents or presentations, taking video calls, and context switching across activities, Recall will take regular snapshots and help you find things faster and easier. When you need to find or get back to something you’ve done previously, open Recall and authenticate with Windows Hello. When you’ve found what you were looking for, you can reopen the application, website, or document, or use Click to Do to act on any image or text in the snapshot you found.”
To address previous concerns, Microsoft emphasizes that users will have to actively opt-in to the snapshot functionality and can pause it whenever they choose. However, whether these adjustments will suffice to alleviate widespread apprehension remains uncertain.
Source
arstechnica.com