Microsoft, facing criticism over the security of its products, is withdrawing a new artificial intelligence feature of its Windows software for new personal computers from wide release and will instead test it with a smaller group.
Recall, a Windows feature unveiled in May, keeps a record of everything people do on their PCs – an approach intended to make it easier to perform tasks such as searching emails or search for files. Microsoft had planned to release Recall broadly on June 18, but said it will now only be available in the Windows Insider program for the next few weeks.
“We are adapting the release model for Recall to leverage the expertise of the Windows Insider community to ensure the experience meets our high standards for quality and security,” the company said in a blog post on its website on Thursday. “In response to receiving feedback about Recall from our Windows Insider community, we plan to make Recall (preview) available to all Copilot+ PCs soon, as we normally do.”
Security researchers criticized Recall almost immediately after its introduction, saying that malicious actors could gain access to data collected by the tool and stored locally on a user’s PC. Microsoft responded by saying that Recall would ship in the “off” position, meaning PC owners would have to choose to use the feature. Additional security measures would be required before Recall can be activated, the company said.
