Despite well-publicized privacy concerns, Windows 10 has been installed on 75 million devices. The privacy concerns have centered on the amount of data collection and information tracking the operating system performs on its users, particularly when installed with its default settings intact. Microsoft has recently introduced updates to its Windows 7 and 8 operating systems which parallel the same levels of data collection and ambiguous methodology for opting-out of these features. Ghacks reported three recent updates that allow Windows 7 and 8 to send Microsoft regular reports on user activity, updates KB3068708, KB3075249, and KB3080149.

The recent updates to Windows 7 and 8 amend the way Microsoft collects your user information for its Customer Experience Improvement Program (CEIP) as well as its telemetry features. Telemetry refers to remote measurements which are taken from user machines and transmitted to Microsoft. Ars Technica describes the necessity of such data collection: “Collecting information about application errors and the way the operating system is used is reasonable. Having an accurate picture of how people use the operating system is likely to produce a better platform in the future; knowing which applications crash, and why, is obviously invaluable if those apps are to be fixed.”

However, as these updates introduce the data collection methodology by default, Microsoft’s attempts to access user information may be seen as aggressive by some. Furthermore, the difficulty of opting out of these data collection features is likely to be beyond the average user. PC World reports that “Disabling the tracking tools in the Recommended KB3068708 update isn’t simple…It connects to vortex-win.data.microsoft.com and settings-win.data.microsoft.com, which are hard-coded to bypass the Windows HOSTS file. In other words, it’s tricky to block unless you have a firewall that can block HTTPS connections as well as be configured manually.” Users who wish to opt-out of these new data collection features have the option to uninstall the updates.