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Recall is a feature in Windows 11 that regularly creates screen recordings and saves them locally. This also involves processing with AI so that users can search through the data. The aim is to make past work steps, websites, or documents retrievable via a search feature. Microsoft first introduced Recall in 2024, but withdrew it after massive criticism due to insufficient security. The feature has been integrated again since the current versions of Windows 11 from 24H2. In Europe, it is available as an opt-in and can be completely deactivated or removed. Access is via a timeline or by entering keywords in the search. The results appear regardless of the program or browser window in which the content was originally visible. Chris Hoffman / Foundry Tip: If you are using Windows 11 Home, you will miss out on the many advantages of the Pro version, which you can get for a significant discount at the PCWorld Software Store. Activation and everyday use Recall is an optional feature in the current versions of Windows 11, which is only offered on Copilot models. This includes computers with a Neural Processing Unit (NPU), at least 16 gigabytes of RAM, and active drive encryption. After installing a corresponding update, the new “Recall and snapshots” section appears in the settings under “Data protection and security.” The feature can be activated here. Sam Singleton The system only starts to capture screenshots after this conscious consent has been given. In practice, Recall checks every five seconds to see if any content has changed and then adds new recordings. After just one working day, several hundred files are created, which can take up several gigabytes of storage space in total. It is operated via a timeline in which you can jump back to specific points in time. Alternatively, a keyword search can be started. One example is entering “orange sofa,” whereupon Recall suggests a shopping page with the product you are looking for. Content from Office documents, PDFs, or locally saved images also appear in the hits. Deactivation via settings and group policies The feature can be paused or completely deactivated at any time via the settings. Companies have further options via group policies. The “Allow Recall to be enabled” policy exists there. If it is set to “Disabled,” the feature disappears completely from the system, the associated files are removed, and a restart completes the process. This method is intended for the Pro and Enterprise editions of Windows. The recall search via keywords divides the results here into text and visual matches. Text matches are assigned to the applications from which the recorded content originates.Mark Hachman / IDG Windows 11 Home users must use the registry editor. Under “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsAI,” a new DWORD value with the name “AllowRecallEnablement” can be created and set to 0. After a restart, all components are removed. Microsoft also offers administrators the PowerShell command “Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName ‘Recall’ -Remove” which also removes the feature from the system. Security protection The data that Recall collects remains stored on your own computer. It is not automatically transferred to Microsoft servers or a cloud. To ensure that no one can access these recordings unnoticed, Windows requires you to log in via Windows Hello. This means that you must either enter your PIN or use a biometric method such as fingerprint or facial recognition. The recall search via keywords divides the results here into text and visual matches. Text matches are assigned to the applications from which the recorded content originates.Chris Hoffman / Foundry Windows also protects the recall data with a technology called VBS Enclave. You can imagine this as a closed area in the computer that is separated from all other programs. Only Windows itself is allowed to look into this area. This prevents external programs from simply reading the recall data. This is exactly what has happened in the past. Microsoft therefore withdrew this feature at the end of 2024. Encryption keys are anchored in the device’s TPM chip. In theory, this prevents attackers from reading the database without a valid login. However, our tests have shown that this protection has its limits. If a device is controlled via remote software such as Teamviewer, it is sufficient to enter the PIN to gain access to the entire recall history. Biometric procedures can be bypassed in this scenario. The risk of an external connection allowing access to all stored content remains. Filter mechanisms and their limits To protect sensitive data, Microsoft promises a filter that removes passwords or credit card information from the recordings. In practice, this only works to a limited extent. Although passwords are hidden in bank login windows, user names still appear. Credit card numbers in form fields are recognized in most cases, but in emails or unprotected text documents they end up unchanged in the recordings. Account balances from online banking applications also regularly appear in the database, even if parts of the page are anonymized by the filter. The handling of self-created password lists is also problematic. If a text file does not contain any unique keywords such as “password,” it is saved by Recall without restriction. This means that access data can be searched for in plain text if it is visible on the screen in an unprotected document. Benefits in everyday working life Regardless of the risks, Recall certainly offers advantages. In an environment with many applications open in parallel, the search makes it easier to find your way around. If you switch between projects, you can pick up where you left off with just a few clicks. The feature also saves time when researching on the web when dozens of tabs are open. Instead of laboriously searching through the history, a keyword is enough to open the page you are looking for. Recall can also be helpful for users who frequently work with visual content. A designer reviewing visual material can use the keyword search to find screenshots that were only briefly displayed. In this use case, Recall replaces manual documentation of work steps. Legal framework conditions in Europe The delayed introduction in the European Union shows that the regulatory framework plays a central role. Data protection authorities only gave the green light after Microsoft designed the feature as an opt-in and created the option to uninstall it. Users must actively agree before Recall starts. The European version also allows the feature to be removed completely. Mark Hachman Additional requirements apply for companies. Recall may not be used without the consent of employees. Administrators can control the provision, but cannot force snapshots. Microsoft is thus complying with the General Data Protection Regulation, which sets particularly high standards for the processing of personal data. Weighing up the benefits and risks The tests so far have made it clear that Recall is a tool with considerable potential, but also with clear weaknesses. While local storage and encryption provide a solid foundation, the filters remain unreliable. Confidential information can end up in the database and be accessed remotely. Anyone using Recall must be aware that the added convenience of seamless documentation comes with a loss of control over sensitive data. This may be acceptable on private devices with manageable risks. In a corporate environment, however, the concerns outweigh the benefits. Recall should only be used here after careful consideration if there are clear guidelines on the use and protection of data. Conclusion Recall in Windows 11 is technically mature enough to be used productively, but at the same time not yet reliable enough to dispel security concerns. The feature creates transparency about past work steps, but inevitably also saves content that does not belong in a search database. If you want to use Recall, you should check the settings carefully, adjust filters, and empty the database regularly. For security-conscious users, deactivation via group policies, registry, or Powershell remains a necessary means of minimizing risks. It is to be expected that Microsoft will make improvements, but it is also to be expected that tools will appear that can override Recall. From our point of view, the use of Recall is currently not recommended. Further reading: Windows Recall is too risky for your PC. I can’t recommend it Read...

The Windows Recall feature takes screenshots of the screen content on Copilot PCs at regular intervals and saves them on the local PC. This enables users to search specifically for images, texts, and websites that they’ve loaded in the past. Although Microsoft has once again improved the security of the feature, there are still concerns about data protection. Partly because of Recall, but also because of the dangers of hidden screenshot programs in general, the developers of the Veracrypt encryption software have added a new protection function with the update to version 1.26.24. By default, this new feature prevents the software from taking any screenshots. Anyone or anything that tries to do so will only receive an image of the background. You can deactivate the protection against screen recordings in Veracrypt. However, the new setting will only take effect after restarting Windows. Roland Feist If you need a screenshot from Veracrypt, you must first switch off this protection. To do this, click on Performance and Driver Options in the “Settings” menu and tick the box next to “Disable protection against screenshots and screen recording”. Confirm the warning and the note to restart by clicking OK, close the window with OK, then reboot Windows and restart Veracrypt for the new settings to take effect. Further reading: Windows Recall is too risky for your PC. I can’t recommend it Read...

It was inevitable: Microsoft plans to carve out space on the Windows 11 taskbar for Copilot, while adding “Hey Copilot” as a wake word to trigger interactions with its AI. While the company isn’t making any overt changes to the branding of Windows 11, its executives this week spoke about reinventing the “AI PC,” the first generation of PCs it launched with early NPUs. Microsoft plans to make PCs smarter, including agents that can take actions and granting Copilot Vision more powers. Adding Copilot to the taskbar will actually be the most visible change to the Windows 11 user interface. However, it’s not the one Microsoft is focusing on. Now, it’s time to talk to your PC again. Yusuf Mehdi, the consumer chief marketing officer and executive vice president for Microsoft, said that the first priority of these new AI PCs was voice. “You should be able to interact with it naturally in text and primarily with voice,” he said in a briefing with reporters. “So you should be able to talk to your PC, have it understand you, and then be able to have magic happen from that, as easy as just talking to it.” “Voice will now become the third input mechanism to use in your PC,” Mehdi added. “It doesn’t replace the keyboard, but it will be an additive thing.” In the Windows 11 2023 Update, Cortana was a separate icon on the Windows 11 taskbar, next to the search box.Mark Hachman / IDG With Windows 10 transitioning into an unsupported state (well, kind of), Windows 11 is really the only focus for Microsoft right now. If the company is readying Windows 12, it will certainly be AI first. But for now, the company plans to test out these new features with Windows 11 Insiders in its beta program in the coming weeks. A key point: none of these new features require an NPU or a Copilot+ PC. They’ll be open to all supported Windows 11 PCs. Copilot: Front and center on the Windows taskbar Microsoft took pains to reiterate that these choices are optional. But if you so choose, you will be able to add Copilot to your taskbar. “Our vision is simple yet bold: to make the taskbar a dynamic hub that helps you accomplish more with less effort, transforming everyday interactions into moments of productivity and delight,” Microsoft said in a blog post. This is what the Windows 11 taskbar will look like now: Copilot essentially replaces the Search box. The Copilot box apparently will serve as a replacement for the existing Search box within Windows 11, though it will handle search queries as well. Importantly, the Copilot box will also include icons for Copilot Vision and Voice, tacitly encouraging you to let Copilot see your screen and hear you. It’s unclear if Copilot is the default. Microsoft says it relies on existing Windows APIs to return apps, files, and settings, without accessing your content. Still, its presence on the screen and taskbar serves as a reminder to use Copilot. Microsoft gives your hands a break with “Hey Copilot” It’s ironic that Microsoft is letting go of Windows 10 this week, since Cortana was one of its flagship features — and “Hey Cortana” was the way to wake it. Cortana, of course, suffered an ignominious deprecation at the hands of the company. In May, Microsoft signaled that “Hey Copilot” would be the trigger to wake Copilot in Windows 11. This feature — now called Voice Mode — is present in the Copilot options. According to Mehdi, it will reach general availability on millions of PCs this week. Saying “Goodbye” will close Copilot, the company said. There’s an ongoing tension with the way people were “trained” to type in search terms, Mehdi said, especially short searches that produced broad results. Now, prompts reward longer inputs, but people are reluctant to type those in because they don’t know what to write. Cortana did appear for a brief time in Windows 11.Mark Hachman / IDG “What we find with Copilot is people don’t know exactly what they want to say,” Mehdi said. “They don’t know exactly what they want to ask or how to ask it. And so with voice, it becomes much simpler, less precise than when you have to have it with a bunch of prompted text.” “I think that’s really kind of the key tipping point, is that you’re able to now easily talk to it and get what you want,” Mehdi said. Will office workers want to talk to their PCs? It’s optional The challenge is also cultural. Can you imagine yourself talking to a PC inside a shared office, even with cubicles, with dozens of coworkers listening in? According to Microsoft, you will: “Hundreds of millions of people today talk for billions of minutes in offices with headphones,” Mehdi said. “They found a way to make it work.” Mehdi also used a specific word to describe how users orally interact with their PCs: not talking “to” the computer, and not talking “with” it, either — but talking “through” it. “And I think that this change to talk with and talk to will come to reality, and we’ll see this thing really take off,” he said. If you’re dead set against talking to — er, through — your PC, there’s another option: Microsoft is adding the ability to interact with Copilot Vision via text. Even dictation on iPhones has helped Microsoft’s user base become more comfortable talking to/through their devices, Microsoft says.Apple Copilot Vision basically sees what you see on your PC’s screen. It doesn’t require an NPU, though my tests found that using it with a Copilot+ equipped PC certainly helped. (Some laptops I used wouldn’t work with Copilot PC, though that was early in the process.) In my test of Copilot Vision, I found it was lousy in helping with older games, but offered real potential in walking you through apps and procedures that you were unfamiliar with. It’s worth noting, though, that Microsoft is testing a Gaming Copilot specifically to help in certain tasks and is launching it with the ROG Xbox Ally. The problem? Copilot Vision was, at the time, all voice driven. Not everybody wants to broadcast to an office or other workspace that they don’t know how to interact with Photoshop. Now Microsoft is granting Copilot Vision an option for text interaction, just like Copilot. “So in the appropriate circumstances, if you want to type in, you can do that,” Mehdi said. It’s not quite clear whether people will want to talk to, with, or through their PCs. I’ve been in a lot of very quiet offices where no one says a word. But Microsoft seems set on making it as comfortable as it can to talk or chat with Copilot. The important thing for the company is that you’re using it. Read...

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Antivirus software is not free of errors and sometimes reports computer viruses where there are none. For this reason, the company Procolored, a manufacturer of textile printers, indignantly defended itself against the report of a printer tester that the software of one of its devices contained a virus. The testing official explained to Procolored that both Google Chrome and Microsoft Defender had triggered an alarm when the printer software was downloaded, and quarantined it. Despite Procolored’s protests, the tester persisted. He sent the software to the security company G Data, a manufacturer of antivirus programs. Upon investigation, it turned out that the printer software actually contained a backdoor virus called Xred and a Trojan. When G Data then confronted Procolored with the results, the company admitted that a virus had crept into its download area and provided a new version of its software. The online sandbox Any.run lets you start suspicious programs in a virtual Windows environment and study their behavior.Foundry How false alarms arise Procolored’s initially defensive attitude is understandable. After all, it does happen that antivirus tools sometimes recognize malware where there is none. But not often. Long-term tests have repeatedly shown that false alarms usually account for less than 1 percent of virus reports. However, they are always annoying, as many users are initially alarmed when their computer reports malware. How do these false positives come about? It has to do with the way antivirus programs work. On the one hand, they access daily updated virus definitions, which they can use to recognize intruders very reliably. However, as there are also many previously unknown malware threats on the internet for which no virus definitions exist, the manufacturers also incorporate heuristic and behavioral analysis methods into their software. Heuristic means that the programs look for suspicious characteristics of a file or program. Behavioral analysis, on the other hand, observes the programs running on the PC. Both methods work with probabilities and calculate whether a program with these or those characteristics could be a virus. False alarms occur from time to time. System programs particularly affected False alarms occur particularly frequently with programs that access system settings or data that the antivirus program classifies as confidential or even secret. This applies, for example, to several tools from the software company Nirsoft, such as the Produkey program. It reads the license keys for Windows and Office 2003/2007 and displays them in its window. A harmless process in itself, but it apparently provides the antivirus software with enough suspicious facts to classify the application as a virus. The same applies to numerous other programs that read out data such as license keys or passwords or change system settings. Among other things, the heuristics of the antivirus software look for combinations of certain system calls that are typical of malware. However, known hacker tools, such as those used to crack passwords, are also blocked by the virus guards. Even though they are offered for download legally. Hacking your own computer, for example to reconstruct a forgotten password, is not prohibited. A perfectly functioning antivirus program that produces no false alarms is an illusion. On the one hand, the software must not overlook malware under any circumstances, while on the other hand it should recognize harmless programs as such. It is therefore inevitable that the virus hunter will play it safe from case to case and report software as dangerous even if it is not. Check the trigger of a false alarm If your virus protection triggers an alarm, you must always scrutinize the trigger yourself. Otherwise, there is a risk that the antivirus program will block parts of the software that are absolutely necessary for it to function. A multi-stage procedure is recommended. Check the purpose of the tool: As a first step, you should consider what you have downloaded. If it is one of the tools already mentioned for determining license codes or passwords, you can assume that it is a false alarm. Check for reputation: However, you should also check where you obtained the software from and think about its reputation. To do this, you need to look at the file that caused the alarm and clarify its origin. If you are using Microsoft Defender as virus protection, you can find the file and its origin in the “Settings” under “Privacy and Security > Windows Security > Virus and Threat Protection > Protection History.” All malware found by Defender is listed there. Click on one of the entries to find out the file name and origin. There are similar directories in every other antivirus program. Defender lists the most recently found threats and shows you details if you wish. To do this, you need to point to an area with the mouse. A pop-down menu is then displayed.Microsoft It is important to know where you got the file from and whether this download site has a good or bad reputation. Sites that offer cracked programs and games or tools for hacking license queries etc., for example, have a poor reputation. Hackers often use this software to transfer malware to users’ computers. Websites that illegally make films and videos available for download also fall into this category. Check for signs of social engineering: Social engineering refers to tricks that cause a person to exhibit certain behaviors that they would not exhibit without these tricks. Social engineering is regularly used in the phishing of private data and, somewhat less frequently, in the distribution of malware. For example, emails or text messages claim that an order is in danger of getting stuck in the post if you don’t take action quickly and install a service tool. However, this is actually a virus. If the antivirus program now reports malware, there is a high probability that it really is malware. Typical social engineering techniques are pressure, urgency, emergencies, and requests for help. Watch out for scams: On the internet, the general rule is that if something seems too good to be true, then it usually is. This could be very favorable purchase offers, for example. If a virus message appears in such a context, then it’s probably justified. What to do in the event of a false alarm If your antivirus software declares a downloaded program to be malware, but you are sure that it is not, you can define the download file or the address of the source on the internet as an exception. Every protection program offers a corresponding function. Use alternative virus scanners If your antivirus program has reported malware and you are not sure whether it is actually malware or a false alarm, you can obtain a second opinion from another antivirus tool in a further step. It is not necessary to uninstall your existing software and then download and install a competitor’s product. It is quicker and easier to scan the suspicious file with an online scanner. Some antivirus manufacturers offer online scanners as a free service on their website. There is an area where you can upload suspicious files to the manufacturer’s servers and have them scanned there. Corresponding offers are available from Eset, F-Secure, and Trend Micro. You can use the online scanner from Trend Micro to scan your computer for existing malware. No installation is required.Foundry Or you can go straight to Virustotal, the online scanner from Google. It presents the suspicious file to several dozen antivirus programs from various manufacturers and displays their scan results. Although there have been isolated cases in the past in which Virustotal also failed to recognize malware, this is probably the safest way to rule out a false alarm. There are also alternatives to Virustotal, including Metadefender Cloud, Hybrid Analysis, and Jotti’s Malware Scan. Jotti’s Malware Scan is an alternative to Virustotal and sends uploaded files to a total of 13 different antivirus scanners. There is a data limit of 250MB per file.Foundry Offline scan with bootable USB sticks and DVDs If you frequently use different computers, you can also install a virus scanner on a bootable USB stick or DVD. In this way, you can check the respective PC first before you start your work. There are several ways to obtain such a stick or DVD. Some antivirus programs contain wizards that allow you to create a portable version on a stick or DVD directly from the software. This applies to the identical programs from Avast and AVG as well as the paid-for Norton Antivirus. The disadvantage: You must first install the respective antivirus program in order to create the disc. Other manufacturers offer rescue discs as ready-to-use downloads. These discs are usually based on a Linux live system that has been supplemented with a virus scanner. They are available from Avira and Kaspersky. After installing an additional component, the Avast virus scanner offers to create a rescue disc on DVD or USB stick with an integrated virus scanner. Foundry Third, you can also use Sardu. With this freeware you can create bootable USB sticks and DVDs and equip them with an antivirus tool of your choice. For this purpose, Sardu provides links to freely available rescue systems from antivirus manufacturers and offers to download the programs directly and integrate them into the stick or DVD. Start suspicious programs safely Another method of detecting false alarms is to run a suspicious program in a secure environment. This can be a virtual machine in which you install Windows and then start the software to be analyzed. If it brings a virus with it, it remains locked in the virtual machine. As a rule, it is not possible to skip to your desktop Windows. You can therefore take your time to observe whether it is ransomware, for example, which is now starting to encrypt the virtual SSD. The alternative is to use a sandbox. This is also a shielded environment that offers the malware no opportunity to break out. Online sandboxes such as Any.run are easy to use, but you can also use locally installable sandbox software such as Sandboxie. Caution: Many viruses are programmed in such a way that they only become active after a period of several hours, days, or even weeks. So if a program in a sandbox does not initially show any abnormalities, this does not mean that it is certainly safe. Virus warnings as a lure Especially in the dark corners of the internet, browser windows pop up again and again, reporting that a virus has allegedly been found on your PC. To solve the problem, you should immediately agree to download an antivirus program. Caution: These messages are invariably scams. The software offered normally has no function. However, it tries to persuade you to pay for a license by regularly displaying notices. Worse still, these programs often contain a virus themselves, making your PC part of a botnet, for example. Related content Best antivirus software: These 8 apps keep your PC safe Is Windows antivirus software still necessary in 2025? These 7 antivirus myths are dead wrong Read...

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Battlefield 6 has almost arrived and it’s already getting a lot of love from online shooter fans. The series has a reputation for smooth gameplay, so how is the latest entry faring? That’s the question Will Smith is answering in the latest PCWorld video, benchmarking its micro stutter (or possibly lack thereof?) on an ideal hardware setup. And as Will has explained before, this is a key metric in how smooth a game feels. Will’s test PC is running an AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D processor and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card, so it’s just about the best hardware you can reasonably expect in the current PC gaming landscape. What we’re looking for isn’t necessarily high frame rates but smoothness. So what we don’t want to see is big spikes in the frame rendering time, which normally oscillate between 5 and 12 milliseconds. And most of the standard campaign gameplay doesn’t really have any of it, though some of the showpiece scripted sections (such as the beach landing) can hit it hard with effects like smoke. Some Battlefield veterans might be a lot more concerned with multiplayer performance, where Will turned off a lot of the bells and whistles like super-high resolution, DLSS, ray tracing, etc. There are more variables in the frame time due to the general chaos of multiplayer and a lot of extra processing that goes on in a multiplayer game. But even in multiplayer, the render time was only a little more chaotic, with possible spikes coming from loading shaders. Even with tons of player characters on the screen, Battlefield 6 seems to be remarkably stable. It looks like the developers have also turned off some of the more performance-hitting effects in the multiplayer mode. For more on the latest PC gaming hardware and performance, be sure to subscribe to PCWorld on YouTube and join us every week for The Full Nerd podcast. Read...