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Microsoft admits Windows 11 has a GDID tracker with no off switch, first documented publicly in an FBI hacker complaint (www.windowslatest.com)
submitted 3 months ago by to c/privacy@programming.dev
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[–] 45 points 3 months ago (4 children)

The connection is that Windows records everything you do. So the FBI asks for every Windows user who accessed a specific site around a date/time and Microsoft can provide that.

You accessed a site over VPN? Your ISP has no idea it was you, , and the VPN didn't keep records, but Windows recorded that and sent it back to the mothership with your unique identifier.

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  • [–] 2 points 3 months ago (2 children)

    Where did you read that?

    Windows does not record everything you do, and especially does not link everything to an ID. Only the MS authentication and MS store stuff uses this GDID.

    The GDID isn't even linked to your name if you don't use a Microsoft Account. The FBI had to jump through hoops to get the information they wanted and only managed to do so after 4 separate instances where they tracked every social media the guy owned and compared it with logins that happened.

    The FBI can use any form of ID to track, and if Linux had a store it could use that ID as well.

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  • [–] 3 points 3 months ago (1 child)

    From the article:

    Microsoft’s records showed that at that exact same minute, a Windows device carrying GDID g:6755467234350028 had visited the ngrok signup page.

    Seems pretty clear to me. Microsoft tracked acces to an independent sign up page using the GDID.

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