Microsoft’s latest AI-based tool gives your PC a ‘photographic memory’ – but experts are concerned it could harm your privacy.
A new tool called “Recall” automatically takes screenshots of your laptop every few seconds, which you can review later.
Microsoft says that the screenshots are stored locally on your computer and cannot be accessed by the tech giant’s staff or any remote hacker.
However, experts share concerns that this could make it easier for people to get personal information from your device if it falls into the wrong hands.
Dr. Chris Srishak, an AI and privacy advisor, called the tool a potential “privacy nightmare.”
“The very fact that screenshots will be taken while using the device can have a chilling effect on people,” he told the BBC.
James Bor, a technical expert at consultancy Bores Group, said the snapshot tool “can capture information that might not otherwise be saved”, such as passwords, credit card details or login details.
If the laptop falls into the wrong hands, the perpetrator can “access the user’s session and obtain the information.”
“The main thing for me would be to make sure it’s very easy to activate and deactivate, and ideally to automate that deactivation as much as possible,” Bore told MailOnline.
However, Borre believes Microsoft when the firm says that no one else can see the screenshots because “the consequences of lying about something like this massively outweigh any potential benefit.”
MailOnline has contacted Microsoft for comment.
Recall is exclusive to Copilot+ PCs, Microsoft’s new line of Windows laptops powered by its Copilot AI assistant introduced earlier this month.
According to Microsoft, Recall aims to “solve one of the most frustrating problems we face every day” – re-finding web pages on a PC.
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With the tool, users can find the content they’ve been watching on their device using search or in a timeline bar that lets them scroll back through screenshots.
“With Recall, you can access virtually what you’ve seen or done on your computer in a way that feels like having a photographic memory,” says the tech giant.
It added that Recall can be turned on and off at any time, but the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said it was contacting Microsoft for more information about Recall’s safety measures.
An ICO spokesman said: “We are making inquiries with Microsoft to find out what safeguards are in place to protect user privacy.
“We expect organizations to be transparent with consumers about how their data is used and to process personal data only to the extent necessary to achieve a specific purpose.”
“Industry must consider data protection from the outset and rigorously assess and mitigate risks to people’s rights and freedoms before bringing products to market.”
Microsoft introduced Copilot last fall, heralding “the entry into a new era of AI” that is changing the way “we benefit from technology.”
Earlier this year, it was revealed that Microsoft would be adding a dedicated AI button to its PCs – and many users weren’t happy about it.
The new line of Windows laptops includes this AI button on the keyboard for quick access to the Copilot chatbot.