Windows 11 Gathers Staggering Amount of Data Without Asking

Many of us know that one person who claims that Windows and other operating systems are just glorified spyware that sends all your data to the darkest pits of the internet. No doubt such claims are often greatly exaggerated and it’s easy enough to stay safe if you keep your system updated and have a reliable antivirus program.

However, a new video from The PC Security Channel shows just how much data Windows 11 gathers compared to older versions of the OS. What’s worse is that the data collection happens before you even install anything on your system.

The video shows the staggering amounts of data Windows 11 collects and sends off to first-party and third-party servers.

The YouTuber used the Wireshark app to analyze network activity on Windows 7 and 11, both of which were “clean” installations. The analysis showed Windows 11 connecting to many third-party servers and other services for mostly sharing ad tracking data.

As mentioned earlier, all of this happens on every Windows 11 device right out of the box without asking for any user permissions or even connecting to the internet.

As for good old Windows XP, which is still considered to be one of the best versions of the OS alongside Windows 7, only connects to Windows Update out of the box. There were no questionable ad trackers in its case, no third-party servers, or any other companies like Google involved.

But it’s not all black and white as Windows 11 does provide a lot more features and services which also require more network activity by default, though it’s still concerning how third-party connections happen without any consent. Not to mention, some of the services that Windows 11 connects to have nothing to do with computing and are simply there to share your data with ad providers.

Source: Neowin