Recall in Windows 11 is a feature designed to capture and store screenshots of your desktop, creating a virtual “photographic memory.” These screenshots are saved locally and can be explored and searched using artificial intelligence.
Users can interact with these screenshots by copying text or opening web pages directly from them. With AI processing through the NPU in Copilot+ PCs, users can perform natural language searches to get results quickly.
However, Recall faced significant privacy and security concerns. Researchers found that the feature wasn’t adequately protected, potentially allowing attackers to access sensitive information. Due to these issues, Microsoft temporarily removed Recall to address the vulnerabilities.
Now, Microsoft has announced that Recall will return for Windows 11 users with Copilot+ PCs enrolled in the Insider program. An update set for October will re-enable the feature.
The recall will be available again on Copilot+ PCs enrolled in the Insider program.
Microsoft has announced the return of Windows Copilot in the post where they initially reported the removal of the feature. In the announcement, they explained the following:
Committed to providing customers with a reliable and secure Recall preview experience on Copilot+ PCs, we are pleased to announce that Recall will be available to Windows Insiders starting in October. As we shared on June 13, we have adjusted our rollout approach to leverage the valuable experience of our Windows Insider community before Recall is available to all Copilot+ PCs. Security remains our top priority and we will blog with more details when Recall is available to Windows Insiders in October.
Microsoft has made several updates to the Windows Recall feature, focusing on enhancing privacy and security for users. These changes aim to make people who own Copilot+ PCs running Windows 11 24H2 feel more comfortable and secure when using this feature.
In this article, we’ll provide a brief overview of the improvements Microsoft has made to boost security and privacy in Windows Recall:
- “Just in time” decryption: Recall images will only be decrypted and accessible when the user authenticates using Windows Hello Enhanced Sign-in Security (ESS).
- Privacy Controls: Users can disable image capture, temporarily pause, filter applications, and delete their captures at any time.
- Device Security: Copilot+ PCs are designed to be secure by default, with features like SmartScreen and Defender that use advanced AI techniques to prevent unauthorized access.
- Distributed computing model: Using local processing on the device and in the cloud offers a choice between privacy and security.
