Microsoft Recall – the company’s upcoming feature for CoPilot+ PCs – is facing another delay. The Redmond company was expected to release its recall feature to Windows Insiders last month. However, according to the company, it is not likely to be available for the next few months. The feature is designed to run on Windows 11 CoPilot+ PCs and capture screenshots of user activity, and has faced considerable criticism since it was first announced due to privacy and security concerns.
Senior product manager Brandon LeBlanc confirmed to The Verge that the recall feature will only be available to members of the Windows Insiders program until December. “To ensure we deliver these important updates, we’re taking additional time to refine the experience before previewing it with Windows Insiders,” the executive told the publication.
What is Microsoft’s recall feature?
Originally announced in May, the new Recall feature is an AI feature designed to run only on CoPilot+ PCs. It can help users find things on their computer by taking a screenshot of all their activities and allowing them to later search the contents of that screenshot. The announcement of the feature faced intense criticism from privacy advocates and security experts, who pointed out several flaws in the initial version of the recall.
Following the backlash, Microsoft halted its plans to roll out the recall to Windows Insiders testers in June and revealed it would come in October. Since then, the company has announced several sweeping changes to the recall feature that are designed to improve its security.
For example, Recall for Windows will now store encrypted data, and encryption keys are protected through the CPU’s Trusted Platform Module (TPM). Microsoft says this feature can only be used in a secure environment to protect user data from being accessed by other users.
Microsoft has also made some changes to the recall to protect user data from being compromised by malware – the feature will include anti-hammering and rate limiting measures. Meanwhile, access to the recall and the feature’s settings can only be unlocked using Windows Hello authentication, with a PIN as a fallback method.
The company has also clarified that the recall will be opt-in for all users with CoPilot+ PCs and can be removed completely. If the feature is rolled out to Windows Insiders by December, we can expect Microsoft to eventually release it to all CoPilot+ PC owners next year.
