Privacy Tools - Helpful or Worthless?

[SearchLight]

I often come across my perusal of freeware sites, a new Privacy Tool that touts it contains the ten or more best settings in one location to adjust or add settings to the privacy of a Windows 10 PC.

I find many of them to be just as confusing as many of the privacy settings of my W10 PC, and worry that if I make the wrong setting, I may impact the ability to receive Windows Updates or impact the ability of some other security feature or other programs to function.

As a result, I just wind up resetting everything back to default, and uninstalling the program.

That being said, have any of you used a program that you found to be effective, and at the same time useful as a supplement to your other security tools, or do you just don't bother?

Thoughts on the subject?

 

[Arequire]

I've seen O&O ShutUp10 praised highly for dealing with Windows 10's data collection. Haven't used it myself but from the screenshots it seems incredibly easy to use and offers a full description of what each feature does.

 

[AlanOstaszewski]

Yes I'm using tools for stopping telemetry. My favourite is O&O ShutUp10. If you have also a RasberryPi you can install Pi-Hole and add this list: notrack/trackers.txt at master · quidsup/notrack · GitHub It performs better than Spybot Anti-Beacon.
For remowing telemetry in Windows 7 you can also uninstall updates with this .bat-File: Remove telemetry updates for Windows 7 and 8.1 · GitHub

EDIT: For everyone that doesn't read the "old" privacy policy of Microsoft: here is a quote:
We will access, disclose and preserve personal data, including your content (such as the content of your emails, other private communications or files in private folders), when we have a good faith belief that doing so is necessary ...

This quote isn't existing in the new. Microsoft hid it in the text.
You can block telemetry, so do this

 

[ForgottenSeer 55474]

I have multiple Vpn services(if that is what you mean)and I believe/think they are very useful.

 

[Sephiroth Source]

I use Spybot Anti-Beacon and I connect all the options available in it, it seems that it changes the hosts files of windows however it does not damage Windows Update and neither the applications that I use, now this will depend on the applications that you use ...

 

[SearchLight]

I have multiple Vpn services(if that is what you mean)and I believe/think they are very useful.

I too, use a vpn for anonymity. I am referring to software that touts that it is capable of preventing Windows from phoning "Microsoft" or similar with system info or other info particular to your pc useage.

 

[HaMeR]

Yes I'm using tools for stopping telemetry. My favourite is O&O ShutUp10. If you have also a RasberryPi you can install Pi-Hole and add this list: notrack/trackers.txt at master · quidsup/notrack · GitHub It performs better than Spybot Anti-Beacon.
For remowing telemetry in Windows 7 you can also uninstall updates with this .bat-File: Remove telemetry updates for Windows 7 and 8.1 · GitHub

EDIT: For everyone that doesn't read the "old" privacy policy of Microsoft: here is a quote:
We will access, disclose and preserve personal data, including your content (such as the content of your emails, other private communications or files in private folders), when we have a good faith belief that doing so is necessary ...

This quote isn't existing in the new. Microsoft hid it in the text.
You can block telemetry, so do this

You advice using shutup 10?

 

[ispx]

if you are doing nothing illegal you need not worry about any one snooping on you. they do not care about your files be it personal / porn.

no matter how many privacy tools you incorporate, if you are using windows, microsoft will know what you are up to, they always did.

i voted no. the only reason i use vpn is to bypass copyright restrictions due to geographical locations for music videos on you tube.

 

[AlanOstaszewski]

You advice using shutup 10?

It's okay. You can apply recommended settings. O&O ShutUp 10 makes automatically a restore point. The chance that you ruin a system with O&O is very low. I use that tool on every WIndows 10 system.

 

[HaMeR]

no matter how many privacy tools you incorporate, if you are using windows, microsoft will know what you are up to, they always did.

This is the main reason of why I never bothered to install any privacy app. I mean its their os, they know better than anyone how to spy us. Anyways do you think third party software like shutup10 really helps in any way to prevent microsoft on spying us?

 

[AlanOstaszewski]

This is the main reason of why I never bothered to install any privacy app. I mean its their os, they know better than anyone how to spy us. Anyways do you think third party software like shutup10 really helps in any way to prevent microsoft on spying us?

Yes.

 

[RoboMan]

I used software to shut down most accesible Windows 10 privacy issues, i use a VPN when needed (not daily use) and extension to block all data tracking online.

 

[TairikuOkami]

I find many of them to be just as confusing as many of the privacy settings of my W10 PC

It is not really their fault, it is MS's fault (it is by design), it basically asks:

Do you want to disable tracking? Are you sure? Are you really sure? Are you really really sure?

If you omit either one setting, all others are being ignored.

and worry that if I make the wrong setting, I may impact the ability to receive Windows Updates or impact the ability of some other security feature or other programs to function

I use all privacy settings out there, I copied many from privacy tools and none breaks WU, unless you block IPs, that is a bit extreme.
Also disabling telemetry prevents Insider from upgrading. Not sure about store apps though or if you MS account instead of local.

 

[Marko :)]

Yes, I use O&O ShutUp10, not just because of telemetry but because of bloatware too. You can disable automatic installation of Candy Crash and other sponsored apps with one click.

I know telemetry can't be disabled completely (actually, it can be in router settings but it literally breaks Windows), however, these programs can reduce amount of data sent to Microsoft's servers significantly. Keep in mind that some domains in hosts file won't work (for example, bing.com). Instead you should add these rules to your firewall settings. It would be even better to install 3rd party firewall because Microsoft can't manipulate with it's settings.

if you are doing nothing illegal you need not worry about any one snooping on you. they do not care about your files be it personal / porn.

Edward Snowden once said: "If you think privacy is unimportant for you because you have nothing to hide, you might as well say free speech is unimportant for you because you have nothing useful to say."

 

[ispx]

@Marko :),

& we all know what happened to mr. snowden after he started speaking freely, applying for political asylum to 21 countries for starters.

the quote does not make no sense to me but i guess it does make sense to you right ? why else would you post a BS quote with my post ?

 

[Arequire]

@Marko :),

& we all know what happened to mr. snowden after he started speaking freely, applying for political asylum to 21 countries for starters.

the quote does not make no sense to me but i guess it does make sense to you right ? why else would you post a BS quote with my post ?

How about this one instead?

Over the last 16 months, as I've debated this issue around the world, every single time somebody has said to me, "I don't really worry about invasions of privacy because I don't have anything to hide." I always say the same thing to them. I get out a pen, I write down my email address. I say, "Here's my email address. What I want you to do when you get home is email me the passwords to all of your email accounts, not just the nice, respectable work one in your name, but all of them, because I want to be able to just troll through what it is you're doing online, read what I want to read and publish whatever I find interesting. After all, if you're not a bad person, if you're doing nothing wrong, you should have nothing to hide." Not a single person has taken me up on that offer.

 

[ispx]

@Arequire,

next time post your source so i know which numb nut you are quoting. no offense but again a whimsical quote with an absurd logic.

 

[Marko :)]

How about this one instead?

That one is really good!

@Arequire,

next time post your source so i know which numb nut you are quoting. no offense but again a whimsical quote with an absurd logic.

Here you go: "Why privacy matters"

Switch to 4:51.

 

[ispx]

Switch to 4:51.

switch get out of here now you got me in splits glenn greenwald seriously

 

[aragornnnn]

I'm using Glasswire to block some junk

Spoiler: Glasswire