How Windows Recall Works—and Whether You Should Switch It On

Now it’s back, with changes. First, reminder will be disabled by default. He won’t suddenly start following you without your knowledge. You have to enable it deliberately if you want to use it. Second, all screenshots and other information captured by Recall are stored locally on your PC. Nothing Windows Recall does is sent to Microsoft’s servers or anywhere else on the web. The files are also encrypted, making them much harder for malicious actors to access.

Third, Windows Hello authentication is required to access Windows Callback. If someone gains access to your PC, they cannot open Recall without going through a facial or fingerprint scanning process, or entering your PIN. So this is a similar level of protection to that of your phone. Fourth, you have the option to not save screenshots when sensitive information (such as passwords or credit card numbers) is on screen. You can also delete screenshots at any time.

This is a pretty comprehensive set of protections, and Microsoft hopes it’s enough to make you trust Recall and enable it. In return, you get the convenience of being able to retrace your steps at any time and return to previous files or tasks even if you only half remember them. The recall has the potential to be useful, but it is understandable why concerns have been raised about it.

Ultimately, it’s about how much you trust Microsoft and the security around your PC. Technically, someone at Google could spy on your Chrome history and Gmail messages if you sync that information between devices, but Google promises that won’t happen, and millions of users agree to that promise in exchange for free use of all of Google’s apps and tools. Now there’s a similar decision to make with Windows Recall.

Use Windows Reminder on a PC

Your screenshots become searchable and interactive.Courtesy of David Nield

If you want to enable Recall to be your long-term computer memory assistant (or just for a short-term test), you can find it among the applications on your PC. Simply search for “Reminder” using the search box at the top of the Start menu. You will be guided through the setup process, which includes verifying the identity of your user account.