Big Tech
Microsoft Account Privacy
Beyond Windows itself, your Microsoft account keeps a cross-service history. The privacy dashboard lets you clear and limit it.
Clean Your Privacy Dashboard
Everything Microsoft has tied to your account lives in one place.
1
Open the dashboardGo to account.microsoft.com and choose Privacy.
2
Clear activityClear your browsing, search, location, and app/service history.
Turn Off Personalized Ads
- account.microsoft.com → Privacy → Ad settings → turn off personalized ads.
Reduce Windows Telemetry
On the PC: Settings → Privacy & security → Diagnostics & feedback → Required only, and turn off the advertising ID under General.
Full checklist in our New Windows 11 setup guide.
Harden Edge
- Edge → Settings → Privacy, search, and services → Tracking prevention: Strict.
- Change the default search engine away from Bing if you prefer.
Common Questions
Does clearing the dashboard stop future logging?
Clearing removes the history; the ad and telemetry settings stop future collection. Do both.
Do I need a Microsoft account at all?
Not always. Windows can run on a local account, and many Microsoft services have web versions you can use sparingly.
What about Microsoft 365 and Outlook?
Those follow the same account privacy settings. Review connected apps and mailbox forwarding rules too.
WANT THIS DONE FOR YOU?
Harbor Privacy blocks tracking and ad domains at the DNS level for every device on your home network, automatically. Get started here.