Microsoft Reassesses Its Most Controversial AI Feature Amid Backlash

Even before the release of Copilot+ PCs, Microsoft is already revising its Recall feature. This feature is crucial to Copilot+, capturing snapshots of all your activities on the PC and utilizing a local AI model to analyze that data. In light of user feedback, Microsoft has announced several changes to Recall through a recent Windows blog post.

First, Recall will now be an opt-in feature rather than opt-out. Previously set as the default for Copilot+ laptops, users will now encounter an informative screen during the setup process that explains the function of Recall. If users choose to bypass this screen, Recall will remain disabled.

Additionally, Microsoft now mandates the use of Windows Hello for Recall. Users will need to authenticate with facial recognition or a fingerprint to access Recall, reinforcing privacy with “proof of presence.” This is a significant adjustment, as it mitigates potential privacy and security risks that could arise if a user were to leave their Copilot+ PC unattended.

Moreover, Microsoft has implemented “just in time” decryption for the Recall database, accompanied by an encrypted search index. This means that snapshots will only be decrypted post-authentication with Windows Hello, ensuring they remain secure prior to that moment. Recall stirred considerable concern in the PC community due to its ability to document everything from web searches to private messages. While AI processing occurs directly on the device without sending data to a cloud data center, privacy and security risks were apparent. The updates aim to enhance the overall security of Recall.

The most significant change, however, is that Recall will now be disabled by default. This indicates Microsoft’s intention to integrate this feature more widely into the Windows ecosystem, potentially leading users to inadvertently share data without realizing they’re using Recall. This shift is remarkable for Microsoft, which has typically set its features to "on" by default, highlighting the substantial user backlash against Recall.