Microsoft (MSFT) is preparing to roll out its long-delayed AI-powered reminder feature for Windows 11 PCs to developers as part of its Windows Insider program.
The company initially announced the recall in May, when he launched his Copilot+ PCsAI PCs with a specific set of features to run native AI applications. Recall is designed to capture screenshots of the various tasks you perform while using your computer, whether it’s browsing the web or working on a document.
The idea is that you can search through Recall screenshots and then be able to act on them. Let’s say you’re looking for flights and hotels for an upcoming trip or doing research for a work project, but you close your browser. You will be able to search Recall for information related to these topics and view the appropriate screenshots.
With Microsoft’s Click to Do feature, which is also in preview, you will then be able to act on these screenshots. For example, you will be able to copy text, return to the captured reminder website, or edit images.
It seems very convenient for tracking your activity and getting back to tasks you need to complete, but Recall immediately set off alarm bells among users. security researchers and privacy experts. The fear is that hackers or other cybercriminals could access Recall’s screenshots and get their hands on sensitive user data.
Microsoft then made a series of changes to Recall, including making it an opt-in feature rather than an opt-out feature, meaning users must choose to use it instead of it being automatically available.
The company also said that Recall screenshots, or Snapshots as Microsoft calls them, are encrypted and can only be accessed using the company’s Windows Hello authentication feature. You can also choose whether or not Recall saves information from specific websites. The app will also recognize when you enter sensitive information such as credit card numbers, passwords, and other personal identification numbers and will temporarily stop saving screenshots.
Microsoft also says you’ll be able to turn off Reminder through the Windows settings menu, and the feature will be automatically removed from PCs managed by work and school administrators.
The Recall preview will initially only be available for Windows 11 laptops running Qualcomm (QCOM) Snapdragon processors. Intel (INTC) and AMD (AMD) laptops will have to wait.
It’s all part of Microsoft’s efforts to get users on board with its Copilot+ PC effort. The general idea of the platform is to bring generative AI capabilities to Windows PCs through on-device and cloud-based AI services.