A new Microsoft feature that captures users’ laptops every two seconds is under investigation through the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
The Recall feature will be installed on Microsoft’s new laptops and is part of its Copilot synthetic intelligence (AI) program.
The feature will record everything a user does by taking screenshots every few seconds and then allows the user to rewind in their activity and search.
However, after security considerations arose around this feature, the ICO said, “We are investigating with Microsoft to understand the safeguards available for user privacy. “
Recall is designed to “help you seamlessly locate and not forget the things you’ve noticed in herbal language,” according to Microsoft, AI, and “photographic memory. “
For example, if a user shops for groceries online and sees a great brown leather bag, they might search for “brown leather bag” on Recall a few days later.
It would then show screenshots of the times they were in a brown leather bag and link them to the internet sites they were on. It would also search for images, documents, presentations, and files and retrieve everything applicable from your laptop.
It can even make movements that the user would like to make in relation to their search.
However, one cybersecurity official described the new feature as a “grab and go” goal for criminals.
“With this feature, endpoints will suddenly become a more lucrative target,” said Muhammad Yahya Patel, lead security engineer at Check Point, a cybersecurity firm.
“This is a one-time attack for criminals, like an attack and voila, but with Recall, they’ll necessarily have everything in one place. “
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Microsoft said all files will be stored locally on users’ laptops and “will not be available to Microsoft or anyone without access to the device,” reducing the threat of hackers accessing files on a cloud-based system.
However, files will still be censored when stored, which means that non-public data, such as visual passwords or visual medical data, will be retained in screenshots.
If the user’s computer is hacked, there are fears that incredibly sensitive knowledge can be easily accessed.
“Imagine the gold mine that will be stored on a device and what malicious actors can do with it,” Patel said.
Charlie Milton, vice president of cybersecurity company Censornet, said the feature increases the threat of scams by potentially allowing hackers access to their victims’ lifestyles.
“As a [hacker], the first thing I’ll do is take a look at all the screenshots of what I’ve been doing recently to perceive their behavior,” he said.
“If I need to pay to make money from you, the most productive way to do it is to pretend that you’re most likely to transfer cash and whoever you’ve worked with in the last 48 hours, and then say so. that the main points of my bank have changed.
“It would give those malicious actors a very intelligent understanding of the user’s habits and their recent habit so they can influence you. That’s important. “
Microsoft told the BBC that a would-be hacker would have to physically unlock a device, unlock it and sign in before they could access only the stored screenshots.
In a blog post about the new feature, Microsoft also said that the user is “in control” and can “delete individual snapshots, adjust and remove time levels in settings, or pause at any time. “They can also impede the ability to register express apps and websites.