Elon Musk urges millions to disable the recall feature in Windows 11

However, it should be noted that Elon Musk, who also owns and operates the tunneling company The Boring Company, is far from the only one concerned about the impact of the impending recall.

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) confirmed to the BBC that it was “making inquiries with Microsoft to understand what safeguards have been put in place to protect users' privacy.” The data protection authority added that private companies must “rigorously assess and mitigate risks to people's rights and freedoms” before bringing new products to market.

To allay fears, Microsoft has assured PC owners that Recall never Take screenshots when using a private browsing mode, such as Incognito mode in Google Chrome. Windows 11 users can also add separate exceptions, including specific apps where the feature doesn't apply.

Data protection activists also reacted very I strongly agreed with the announcement of the recall.

“This could be a privacy nightmare,” Dr Kris Shrishak, an AI and privacy consultant, told the BBC. “The mere fact that screenshots are being taken while the device is being used could have a chilling effect on people.”

Jen Caltrider, program director for the *Privacy Not Included team at Mozilla, warned that Recall would allow anyone with access to your laptop or desktop PC to access a treasure trove of personal information because the software contains a categorized list of recent activity.

Caltrider warned: “[This includes] Court orders from law enforcement or even Microsoft if they change their minds and stop storing all that content locally and using it for targeted advertising or training their AIs.”

According to Microsoft, Recall does not censor or delete information from the screenshots it takes, even if passwords or bank account details are visible on the screen.

In a blog post about the new functionality that comes with the new Surface Laptop next monthThe US company wrote: “Recall uses your personal semantic index, which is created and stored entirely on your device.

“Your snapshots are yours; they stay local on your PC. You can delete individual snapshots, adjust and delete time periods in Settings, or pause them at any time directly from the system tray icon on your taskbar. You can also filter apps and websites so they are never saved. You are always in control and can be confident in your privacy.”

But Jake Moore, global cybersecurity advisor at software security company ESET, says the creation and storage of more private data through this feature could be a tempting prospect for cybercriminals.

“Enabling a screen capture feature not only provides the company behind the software with even more data, but also opens up another avenue for criminals to attack,” he said.

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“Although this feature is not enabled by default, users should be aware that all content is analyzed by AI algorithms for a better experience.

“While this may produce better results, a balance must be maintained between functionality and privacy. Therefore, users must be aware of the potential risks should sensitive data ever be compromised. Creating and storing more private data seems unnecessary when cybercriminals are constantly looking for vulnerabilities to exploit.”