"Why You Must Dump Microsoft NOW"

Brad R Saturday 08 August 2015 - 10:05:37  

Thanks to C.W. for the link to this article: "Why You Must Dump Microsoft NOW".

As of August 1, 2015 (that is, a few days ago), Microsoft announced a new privacy policy and a new services agreement. In the words of one network professional, “Basically, they redefined their operating system to be spyware.”

If you use a Microsoft product -- including an online product like Skype or OneDrive -- you grant them the rights to collect, and to share at their discretion,

[Y]our first and last name, email address, postal address, phone number, … passwords, password hints, and similar security information, … your age, gender, country and preferred language, … your location, … the teams you follow, … the stocks you track, … favorite cities, … credit card number and the security code, … items you purchase, the web pages you visit, and the search terms you enter, … IP address, device identifiers, … your contacts and relationships, … your documents, photos, music or video you upload, … subject line and body of email, text or other content of an instant message, audio and video recording of a video message.

Read the whole thing. This is an aspect of the Microsoft prison that I rarely mention. Perhaps I should mention it more often, because it's important. In these days of identity theft and rampant privacy violations, keeping control of your personal data is crucial.

In the thirteen-plus years that I've been using Linux, I have never signed a user agreement to do so. Nor have I checked "accept" to terms on a web page, nor opened a shrinkwrap package with a you-accept-this license inside. In fact, I couldn't legally use Linux at all but for the fact that the authors have accepted an agreement, the GNU Public License (GPL), which says that I'm free to use their work.* (With each passing year I become more amazed at the brilliance and the foresight of the creators of the GPL.)

You are free to download and install Linux on your computer, and not give up any rights to your personal information. You don't even have to "register" your copy of Linux...no one is keeping track. I predict that this is going to become more important in years to come. Because it's not merely that Microsoft doesn't care about your privacy; Microsoft is actively working to undermine your privacy.

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* If I wish to copy or redistribute their work, I must accept certain (modest and agreeable) terms or I will be guilty of copyright violation. But none of that applies if I merely wish to use their work myself.
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