What information does Microsoft collect about you? You can view and delete that information via the privacy dashboard, such as the search history in Bing. Microsoft and privacy
It privacy dashboard (English for privacy dashboard) provides an overview of data that various Microsoft services collect. Think of information such as which apps you use and how, which searches you provide and where you are at that moment. Via the dashboard you can view and delete the collected data.
Using the privacy dashboard
The dashboard takes care of things related to Microsoft services. Those who do not use the browser Edge and search engine Bing have little to look for in the privacy dashboard. For the sake of completeness, we explain how the dashboard works.
- surf to https://account.microsoft.com/privacy
- Log in if you are not already logged in.
- Click on the top right To register to log in.
- Enter the email address of the Microsoft account.
- click on Next one.
- Enter the password and click To register.
The ‘Privacy’ page appears. This page is divided into a number of blocks. If you scroll down you will see:
- Location activity
Not relevant for those who have turned off location data in Windows itself. If the location data is saved, you can delete it. - Speech activity
This is only relevant if you occasionally use voice commands. Since October 30, 2020, Microsoft no longer stores voice data. - Browsing history
This is only relevant for users of the Edge browser. Here you can delete your browsing history from the browser. - Search history
This is only relevant to users of the Bing search engine. Do you want to clear your search history? click on Clear all search history > To clear. - App and service activity data
If you use an app or service from Microsoft, such as search engine Bing or cloud service OneDrive, the company remembers which apps or services you use and how. Delete the activity by clicking Clear all app and service activity data > To clear. - media activity
Microsoft remembers which movies or TV shows you watch through a Microsoft app or service, such as Microsoft Movies and TV. Delete the viewing history here if necessary. - Data about the performance of apps and services
Microsoft also stores information about whether the products work properly when you use them. If necessary, delete this data via Clear performance data for the app and services > To clear.