So, here’s our attempt at really locking down the screws on the Windows 10 experience.
Disable Everything!
Ok, this may sound more extreme (sinister, even) than what it really does. But all we’re suggesting is taking back access from everything that Windows 10 has been generous with. Hit Windows key + i simultaneously to get to the modern Settings window. From here, click Privacy and basically keep disabling everything on the right for every corresponding setting on the left. Again, it just sounds extreme and in real world usage, this won’t affect your PC’s performance in any way. For apps like your Camera, you can do a system-wide disabling or choose individual apps that need not access the camera. The same rule of thumb can be applied to other settings on the left side here.
Wi-Fi Sense
Here’s that controversial topic again. I’m sure you’re bored reading about it already, but we have to address it before proceeding. We have spoken about it before too, but now we’re doing things for additional security, even though it may not be 100% warranted. So head back to the Settings window and, this time, hit Network & Internet and then click Manage Wi-Fi settings under the Wi-Fi area. Here, toggle both switches to OFF and rest a little easier.
Windows Defender
If you search Defender from the search toolbar of Windows 10, you should be able to jump to the Windows Defender windows directly. Here, go to Settings and then under Sample Submission, turn the toggle OFF for Get better, faster protection by sending Microsoft info about potential security problems Windows Defender finds and Help us make Windows Defender better by sending Microsoft samples so we can improve our anti-virus and malware measures both. This will always prompt you (the user) to send the report to Microsoft or not.
Disable CEIP
There happens to be a hidden “Customer Experience Improvement Program (CEIP)” in Windows 10 which collects information about your computer hardware, usage and OS information to Microsoft. To disable this, firstly open Control Panel, click on Action Center icon and then click on Change Action Center Settings link. Type Customer Experience Improvement Program in the search box, from the bottom taskbar. Please Note: If you find that the options in this box are already greyed-out (like mine), then it’s because you’ve already opted out of the program while installing Windows 10. Then, click on it to launch the CEIP settings, where you need to select the radio button No, I don’t want to participate in the program. Hit Save and that’s all you need to do for Microsoft from collecting more info from your PC.
That’s All Folks
These are the most effective steps for securing your Windows 10 PC, but if you have some additional tips do let us know in our forum. Also, if you have any questions regarding any of these steps, drop by and ask away.
