Microsoft opened access to the controversial AI function Recall – users were allowed to limit its “peeping”

After a series of delays, Microsoft has begun rolling out its AI Recall feature to the Copilot Plus PC ecosystem. The first preview of the feature is available today to Windows Insiders on the Dev distribution channel. Also in the latest build of Windows 11, a new Click to Do function has become available to testers – almost an analogue of the Circle to Search function from Google.

Image source: Microsoft

The Recall feature takes screenshots of nearly every activity a Copilot Plus PC user takes, allowing you to later return to any point in the past using natural language queries, as well as a special timeline that allows you to open previously closed applications and websites. To prepare search results, Recall uses AI algorithms to match text and visual elements from screenshots.

Recall timeline

Using Recall is completely optional. Initially, the function is disabled; previously, on the contrary, it was enabled by default. Preview versions of Recall in new builds of Windows 11 distributed through the Dev channel are only available for Copilot Plus PC systems based on Qualcomm Snapdragon X processors. Support will later be available for systems based on Intel and AMD processors.

Users are allowed to select screenshots of which specific actions or objects Recall will take, as well as delete them. Microsoft provides the ability to exclude certain apps and websites from Recall. In addition, the function is able to automatically detect sensitive information (credit card information, passwords, personal data) and not save it. Microsoft itself does not have access to the screenshots Recall creates. No data is sent to the cloud. User information is also not used to train Microsoft AI models.

«We do not send images from your PC to Microsoft or any third parties, nor do we use them for training. Microsoft doesn’t have access to the keys to view encrypted data, so we won’t be able to recover your screenshots if you remove the Windows Hello authorization feature or need to reset your PC or upgrade to a new PC,” says the Windows Insiders team.

Installation and configuration of Recall

Recall requires Windows Hello authorization to access its features, as well as BitLocker and Secure Boot enabled (which are enabled natively on Copilot Plus PC systems).

Part of Recall in the latest test build of Windows 11 is the new Click to Do feature. It is designed to recognize text and images in Recall screenshots. The feature allows you to copy and save this data using AI algorithms.

Click to Do in the current version only works with Recall

In the future, Click to Do will work outside of Recall. The application will be launched by pressing a certain key on the keyboard, as well as the left mouse button. After this, an interactive window with settings will open. The application interface allows you to select parts of an image or text to perform additional actions. In the future, for example, using Click to Do, it will be possible to highlight objects in YouTube videos for subsequent search through Bing.

Initially, the Recall function was supposed to appear in Windows back in July. However, Microsoft was forced to postpone the planned launch after various security experts expressed their concerns about its security. The numerous delays in the release of the Recall app are due to the fact that Microsoft is completely overhauling its security structure. The application will be optional, and users will be able to completely remove it from their PC if they wish.