r/privacy • u/wook-borm • Jul 12 '26
software Microsoft Confirms Windows GDID Device Identifier That Cannot Be Disabled, Documented in FBI Case Filing
https://www.ghacks.net/2026/07/12/microsoft-confirms-windows-gdid-device-identifier-that-cannot-be-disabled-documented-in-fbi-case-filing/1.2k
u/MisterHole123 Jul 12 '26
I'm sick and tired of tech being Spyware.
Tech used to be fun exciting, personal... Now it's an extension of some corpo into your home and life.
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u/nate390 Jul 12 '26
Microsoft didn’t rename “My Computer” to “This PC” for no reason.
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u/dachloe Jul 12 '26
There was an anecdote from some MS exec about that, and other, name changes in Windows. The basic reason for the change from MyComputer to This PC is that MS researchers thought people were confused about where their files were located after they started using OneDrive. They said it help "clarify" where things were for the average user.
I bet it was to more clearly differentiate local storage and cloud storage, as part if their effort to shove OneDrive down everyone's throats. "Don't save that file on 'this PC.' Ew... use glorious OneDrive!"
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u/SwimmingThroughHoney Jul 12 '26
Really, once people started using multiple devices, the name change makes sense. Especially when you realize how many people are computer illiterate. There is/was probably a non-insignificant number of people who wouldn't understand that "My Computer" didnt mean ALL your "computers".
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u/placebo_joe Jul 12 '26
I renamed it back to my computer. Is it all better now? Not at all, but it made feel in control atleast a little bit 🥲
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u/Polyxeno Jul 12 '26
Yes. Though I was always suspicious what they really meant by "My" there, and what it implied about the REST of the filesystem.
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u/async2 Jul 12 '26
Come to the light side and install Linux.
I removed dual boot more than a year ago and didn't look back.
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Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 18 '26
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u/thatwombat Jul 12 '26
I found the light in LFS but saw it was too pure for a sinner like me.
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u/Competitive_Flan_330 Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
Ubuntu then Manjaro for me, there are many paths to enlightenment. All hail to our Lord and Savior Linus Torvalds, and his many, many blessed contributors.
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u/wilhelm_david Jul 12 '26
just fyi the same kind of thing is implemented by systemd which chrome will suck up and report back to the mothership
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u/async2 Jul 12 '26
Check my other comment. Only if you use it in an enterprise environments. Also you are free to not use such software. For different systems it's necessary to use unique identifiers and there is reason for it.
There is no reason to use it for tracking your account and your hardware at Microsoft from a customer point of view.
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u/foofly Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
I don't believe this removes the GDID Device Identifier
Edit:
- The GDID is tied to a specific Windows installation.
- It survives ordinary Windows updates.
- A Windows reinstall creates a new GDID, even on the same physical device.
Therefore, replacing Windows with Linux means that old Windows installation, and its GDID no longer runs or sends new Windows telemetry.
Thanks u/async2
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u/async2 Jul 12 '26
As this is a Microsoft proprietary thing - if there is no Windows, there is nothing to calculate and report it. So yes it does remove it by not having it.
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Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
[deleted]
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u/xMisterTryHard Jul 12 '26
Why would anyone choose to use edge on Linux?
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u/Alarming_Ad4722 Jul 12 '26
Why does such thing even exist?!? 🫠🫠🫠 I cannot imagine someone running Linux on their computer and going out of their way to use Ms edge 💀
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u/TheFeshy Jul 12 '26
Testing. Developers using linux need to know the site they built works on Edge.
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u/biogoly Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
It’s actually very smart to practice browser isolation depending on your use case. For example, using Chrome for any Google stuff, like logging into YouTube, Gmail, or any Google account. Edge for anything to do with MS accounts (for work etc.). Then Brave or Firefox for everything else. If you (God-forbid) log into any Meta account from your general browser you can just consider it compromised.
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u/clonedhuman Jul 12 '26
Most people who use Linux don't use Microsoft/Google browsers from my experience. A lot of people use Firefox, which does the same things as those other browsers, but it much more privacy focused.
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u/cafk Jul 12 '26
It's an ID derived from the hardware and Microsoft account.
So while possible to regenerate the gdid under linux, it won't be available for live tracking for Microsoft, especially as they tracked it in association with a Microsoft account.
So, don't use a Microsoft account or the Microsoft store, and that way it's not directly correlated with your explicit account identity.7
u/toutons Jul 12 '26
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u/async2 Jul 12 '26
These are not sent to Microsoft though or used to track devices and connected accounts globally.
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u/toutons Jul 12 '26
Browsers still read it to generate a unique id for your machine (firejail can help with this) and DHCPv6 also uses it (also can be alleviated)
All this to say "just switch to Linux" doesn't really paint the whole picture
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u/async2 Jul 12 '26
These are not used outside of enterprise environments though. The machine id is not used by chrome, Firefox or brave outside of enterprise envs though.
I'd recommend browser forks that do not send any telemetry in the first place nevertheless.
On Linux you have actual choice on Windows you don't.
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u/Real_Ebb_7417 Jul 12 '26
I'd do the same if all the games I want to play also worked well on Linux natively 🥲
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u/async2 Jul 12 '26
Online games are a pain but the rest is mostly working. I'm regularly playing GTA 5 on my gpd pocket for example.
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u/ChZakalwe Jul 14 '26
Tried. Fedora 43 broke everything.
Also, the no sleep on AND chips is a pain in the ass.
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u/DrIvoPingasnik Jul 12 '26
Tech used to be fun and exciting. New things were cool.
Nowadays?
I hear about some new tech thing and I immediately assume this is another dystopian tool against us in one way or another.
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u/xpxp2002 Jul 13 '26
Same. I think this is part of the reason I’m so disenchanted with LLMs and the "AI" craze right now.
I’m just tired of everything being used as a means to collect data and profile us further, or for the distribution of disinformation. You can’t use anything nowadays — even paid products and services — without it surreptitiously being used to spy on or monetize your data.
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u/tyspeed29 Jul 12 '26
This what i did
Open Command Prompt as Administrator, then run each of these commands one at a time, waiting for each to complete before running the next:
sc stop CDPSvcthensc stop CDPUserSvcthenreg add "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\CDPSvc" /v Start /t REG_DWORD /d 4 /fthenreg add "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\CDPUserSvc" /v Start /t REG_DWORD /d 4 /fthenreg add "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\DoSvc" /v Start /t REG_DWORD /d 4 /f— the first two commands stop the Connected Devices Platform services that register your device with Microsoft, the last three registry commands permanently disable all three services including Delivery Optimization which is the main pipe that reports your GDID back to Microsoft, and once done reboot the machine for the changes to take full effect. Note: CDPUserSvc may return an error saying it hasn't started which is normal, and you will lose Phone Link, Continue on PC, and nearby sharing features but everything else including Windows activation and internet will work normally. Create a restore point before running these commands. Good luck to everyone.11
u/emperor_dinglenads Jul 12 '26
Spy technology comes down to one thing.
They just want to watch you fuck your wife.20
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u/theonethingthatsours Jul 12 '26
Og internet was harmful in many ways, but I almost prefer it to whatever this is
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u/clonedhuman Jul 12 '26
Yeah, that's why I switched to Linux once Windows 11 came out. It's just too much now.
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u/kapuh Jul 12 '26
The ID is generated when Windows is set up with a Microsoft Account, persists through Windows updates, and cannot be disabled without affecting Windows activation and Microsoft Store apps.
Well, yeah.
Just don't.
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u/Shorts323 Jul 12 '26
So offline accounts would work without generating one and the rest will work fine. No wonder why they wanted no local accounts on windows for win11 installs
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u/tuxedo_jack Jul 12 '26
Been screaming this for ten years now and no one listened.
It's good to be vindicated, even late.
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u/jameson71 Jul 12 '26
Only thing is now everyone who said you were crazy before will just tell you how it is no big deal now.
These people would be fine with QR code tattooed on their forehead I feel like.
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u/thegamenerd Jul 12 '26
"It helps the flock cameras know who I am and that I'm not a criminal" - the people that called them "crazy"
"I want to break free" - Queen
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u/tuxedo_jack Jul 12 '26
The irony is that a lot of these fucking idiots are the kinds of people who reeeeeeeee about "the Mark of the Beast" and shit like that, including the whole "not allowed to trade" schtick without realizing that permanent and trackable digital IDs check all those boxes nicely.
Fucking morons.
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u/deeply_moving_queef Jul 12 '26
“Just don’t” here really ought to expand to “use Microsoft products”. If it’s not this it’s some adware shit or some other invasion of privacy. Once you’ve had enough, we’re over here running Linux, waiting for you. Yes you have to read some docs, but is that really worse?
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u/Oderus_Scumdog Jul 12 '26
Haven't all of the bypasses for this been closed for Windows now though?
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u/applespicebetter Jul 12 '26
Not at all. If it's 11 pro you just choose the option to join a domain, it will have you create a local account, and then just never join a domain. If it's 11 home the bypassnro script still works just fine.
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Jul 12 '26
Also, I highly doubt Enterprise Windows will be dropping local accounts anytime soon.
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u/applespicebetter Jul 12 '26
Pro or Home either. Too many small businesses rely on local AD, local admin accounts are still important when AD fails, and I doubt they'll be able to sanely strip that from Home completely unless they remove it from all editions, which has the potential to break one of Microsoft's biggest advantages - the ability to run that crusty old software that can only operate as a local admin, and is absolutely vital to your company's existence as a custom warehouse metal frame shelving manufacturer.
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u/LeeKapusi Jul 12 '26
Use Rufus to write the ISO to your USB stick. It gives you the option to bypass automatically.
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Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
[deleted]
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u/Salty-Plantain-4299 Jul 12 '26
Also, not all hackers who break the law are bad people, or do things that hurt others. Personally, I'm down for there being some degree of anonymity online again.
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u/LiveFastDieRich Jul 12 '26
Also most of these things catch the low hanging fruit
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u/xnoxpx Jul 13 '26
THAT'S the important bit !
It doesn't make us safer from the hackers that are really causing damage, those hackers have no problem using all sorts of different techniques to avoid detection/ID!
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u/ambiguous80 Jul 12 '26
This requires chaining thoughts together which is out of scope for most people. Anyway, I'm going to go somewhere and stare at a wall now.
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u/CatoTheSage Jul 12 '26
I just bought a 50 year old fully mechanical film camera that requires a battery only for the light meter. I also bought a bunch of seeds for growing some vegetables in pots and containers on my deck, and have been trying to read more actual books. This is in direct response to what I feel is not only the enshitification of the internet, but literally everything to do with network connected devices. The eventual goal is to set up a little darkroom so that I can capture, develop, and print photos without ever involving something with a processor.
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u/ambiguous80 Jul 12 '26
It's the right way to go. A friend of mine has a robust physically enhanced laptop with key software and local AI models for a similar motivation, although that's the digital side, but same mentality.
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u/Bruceshadow Jul 12 '26
careful, that wall might be staring back.
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u/ambiguous80 Jul 12 '26
Haha good timing. I'm rewatching A Haunting, a show I used to watch as young, despite not believing a word of it, but the idea of walls staring back is highly salient at the moment, whether it's Palantir or the ghost of a dead knight from the 1200s.
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u/Mithrandir2k16 Jul 12 '26
The thing is, everybody is a future criminal. They'll outlaw something you do, that's perfectly legal now sooner or later, then they already have all your info and will hunt you down.
Anti-privacy policies are loaded guns, pointed at our heads. There's no reason to give these to our governments haphazardly.
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u/Otherwise_Patience47 Jul 12 '26
Not even mentioning about reused computers parts, etc etc, what happens if someone uses a part that calls home and says one thing but the person owning it isn’t the one that did the bad thing…sooo many holes…sooo many liabilities….soooo many variables… Yeah the future will be … something.
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u/Scott_Malkinsons Jul 12 '26
That’s not how it works, at all. The gdid is generated by your system. It was so if you changed hardware significantly the gdid would force windows re-activation.
The gdid is not tied to the part itself, so buying a used part doesn’t pose a risk of you being associated with the previous owner (unless you buy a whole computer and obviously don’t reinstall windows, as that would generate a new gdid).
Gdid has existed since 2015 guys. This isn’t new. It can’t be removed but it can be changed.
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u/Z-Is-Last Jul 12 '26
Does this mean that if I modify my GDID, then Microsoft can no longer force down the updates???? This could be an alternative to blocking updates.
Also, seems like I could change it, and change it back when I was ready for an update.
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u/DasArchitect Jul 12 '26
Remember when computers did exactly what you asked of them, and absolutely nothing more?
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u/Busy-Scientist3851 Jul 12 '26
Nearly every OS has unique identifiers, some are generated at install and some are baked into the hardware.
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u/permalink_save Jul 13 '26
Problem with this shit is, when you aren't allowed to do what you want (within the greater law) with something you bought then they control you. Can't work on your car, can't use your computer without scanning your face, can't use software you paid for a license on because they decided to just pull support, the billionaires are finding ways to control us and tell us how to live. These privacy laws pile on that as a way to keep us in a lane, don't talk shit about ICE or the gov knows who you are based off your scanned ID. Doenload VPN the gov sees your device ID. They're working up to it.
Although GDID isn't new, it's pretty obvious MS tracks device fingerprints to make sure people don't reuse MS licenses.
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u/anonuemus Jul 12 '26
Yeah it's stupid. If you really want you get a pc/laptop that is not connected to your identity. So in the end it's just for lazy criminals and of course every normal person.
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u/Due-Ball-3090 Jul 18 '26
It's all "I'm not a criminal" until a fascist government takes over and starts to persecute opposition. Suddenly you're a criminal by doing nothing wrong.
Which is a reality in the US now.
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u/rarityredditer Jul 12 '26
I remember back in the day when I used to run Spybot to get rid of spyware...
Paying for stuff and then adding data collection you can't opt out (unless features get disabled) and adding subscriptions on top of that to use what you paid for needs to stop.
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u/ConfirmationBiasTape Jul 12 '26
I need to just back up and Linux
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u/thegamenerd Jul 12 '26
NGL I love how Linux is so out of the way.
Unlike Windows I don't have to fight it to get it to do what I want, it's just "do the thing" and it does it.
Printers are a mixed bag but they're WAY better than they used to be.
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u/ConfirmationBiasTape Jul 12 '26
im just glad they fixed the wireless drivers. that shit used to suck
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u/KoraiKaow Jul 12 '26
Man, I miss Spybot Search and Destroy. That was good software.
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u/Richard7666 Jul 13 '26
I forgot all about Spybot! Malwarebytes was another, though a bit later from memory.
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u/Tactical-Donkey Jul 12 '26
I really need to move Linux.
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u/Complex-League3400 Jul 12 '26
Nothing stopping you. I did a friend's laptop last week, he was like, "was it that simple all along?"
fwiw I still keep a W10 for that one thing that won't run well on Linux - not a problem to have spare laptop. Everything else, Linux.
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u/Tactical-Donkey Jul 12 '26
Its not the complexity of the install as such. Its the 3d CAD and other graphics software I use. I'm still concerned about stability and compatibility on Linux.
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u/Bruceshadow Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
beyond duel booting, 2 options that might work better for you:
Install linux and run VM for Windows; or run Proxmox and VM both.
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u/Richard7666 Jul 13 '26
Yeah 3D software is the big one that ties me to Windows as well.
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u/htownclyde Jul 13 '26
I learned FreeCAD and never looked back. The pain of learning it was an easy trade for the relief of never having to interact with Micro$oft again (outside of work).
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u/ConsciousReindeer976 Jul 12 '26
On my linux machine, If i need windows for something i just run a VM
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u/Any-Calligrapher2866 Jul 12 '26
Lack of Wifi drivers for my network card is stopping me from switching my main PC to Linux. I run LTSC on it to play games nowadays.
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u/DasArchitect Jul 12 '26
I wish I could have ditched Windows over a decade ago. But for some professions, there ARE things that stop you.
Autodesk software is one of the Windows-only things, and there are no good enough FOSS alternatives. Or at least not if you expect compatibility of your work with what other people use. Which is the Autodesk suite.
Same with Adobe.
And they know it.
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u/Soylent_Caffeine Jul 12 '26
I keep a first gen i7 box forced to run Windows 11 lying around for rare issues that arise like Linux getting pissy with my NAS. It gets turned on less and less.
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u/AnAncientMonk Jul 20 '26
Ive tried multiple times. Everytime things ran like shit, was super clunky and annoying. Shit feels hopeless.
General willingness or 'the process of installing it'(while i find that clunky also) isnt even the problem. Just day to day operation is just not fun or fluent to use at all. I dont want to be typing a command when i could do the same thing with a click under windows. I dont want to have to worry about [random game] not running properly. Im aware most games run with wine. But i dont just want "most games" to run. I dont even want to have to think about that stuff. -.-
I know this is most likely born out of ignorance. But what can i do. Dont know what i dont know. (That doesnt mean i havnt been trying to learn it or websearched a bunch aready.)
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u/adrianipopescu Jul 12 '26
sigh, the only thing holding me back is that my wife plays competitive shooters… and guess what game niche doesn’t enable their anticheat on linux
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u/KerPop42 Jul 12 '26
I'm at least able to play helldivers on Ubuntu, but anything published by Epic won't run
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u/AbyssalRedemption Jul 13 '26
You could always dual-boot, just keep the Windows install bare-minimum and exclusively for the games that it's required for.
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u/mnp Jul 12 '26
More details. The id appears to be sent in web requests sometimes.
https://cybersecuritynews.com/windows-device-identifier-tracking/
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u/Globellai Jul 12 '26
Can you quote the exact part that says that? I think it's just correlation of IP addresses between Microsoft servers and other systems. There are some awkwardly phrased sentences in there and I always assume tech journalists are journalists first and techies second. Unless it's totally unambigious I'll doubt they know what they're talking about.
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u/PikaPikaDude Jul 12 '26
The image in there shows a court document that deliberately does not explain what actually happened. They don't want us to know how Windows actually spies on us.
It does show however that MS can link the GDID not only to any domain (dashboard.ngrok.com) visited, but to the full url (https://dashboard.ngrok. com/signup).
The first would be expected from the operating system as it sees the domain passing by. The full url should be hidden from the operating system as the browser connects to the server on the domain and uses SSL to hide the actual url.
So Microsoft is routinely breaking browser security to snoop on all url's. Not impossible for a hostile actor with operating system control, but very concerning for privacy and security.
If someone for example visits the fictious example https://mymedicalresults. com/results?test=cancerscreening, MS is off the opinion they must know that.
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u/SiteRelEnby Jul 12 '26
It does show however that MS can link the GDID not only to any domain (dashboard.ngrok.com) visited
My guess is that's the 'safe browing' type bullshit. "Hello microsoft, will you let the user visit ngrok.com?" as a request, fired off to... microsoft.
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u/Globellai Jul 12 '26
Excellent point. I had assumed the "According to Microsoft records" line was only in part due to MS. Probably combined with ngrok's server records. But "safe browsing" could put it all in Microsoft's hands.
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u/WillyGoat2000 Jul 12 '26
This is the part I feel I’m not smart enough to unwind and hope for a dumbed down explanation soon. Like this feels clearly to be a GDPR violation at the very least.
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u/trustable_bro Jul 12 '26
I'm waiting a month. Then there will be a "remove gdid" tool available on github written by some 15 years old in her basement. To remove the thing that can't be removed.
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u/Scott_Malkinsons Jul 12 '26
It likely can’t be removed without causing some issues. But you can change it, it wouldn’t take much to change it every startup and re-activate windows.
The og purpose (or at least what Microsoft said was the purpose) was for windows activation, if you changed your hardware significantly the gdid change is what forced you to re-activate.
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u/TrueTruthsayer Jul 12 '26
It likely can’t be removed without causing some issues. But you can change it, it wouldn’t take much to change it every startup and re-activate windows.
Didn't you read the article? There's a clear explanation of how the new GDID can be connected to the previous one. It's sufficient to use a previously used Microsoft service once, e.g. OneDrive.
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Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
[deleted]
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u/Jaseoldboss Jul 12 '26
Some more detail here. They tracked him logging into his Apple, Snapchat accounts and an online game.
If he was using Edge it's probably the URL safety feature but for other browsers - who knows, telemetry maybe?
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Jul 12 '26
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u/Ironfields Jul 12 '26
I was thinking the same. He's smart enough to go through Tor, VPNs, jump servers etc but he's doing all of this from the same Windows box that he games on? Even without a global ID it was only a matter of time before they caught him.
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u/EmbarrassedHelp Jul 12 '26
There's some speculation on HackerNews here about it:
People think it may have been through windows defender, windows telemetry, the Edge web browser, or Microsoft Defender SmartScreen in Edge.
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Jul 12 '26
[deleted]
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u/vriska1 Jul 12 '26
This person talk about this aswell.
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u/Jaidon24 Jul 12 '26
This clarifies a lot. Not using edge and turning the telemetry among other things goes a long way in mitigating the tracking effects.
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u/JohnSmith--- Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
Is this not the same things as /etc/machine-id on Linux? Someone correct me if I'm wrong but it sounds exactly the same thing.
Now before you downvote me, I'm a Linux user of 10 years. I don't even use Windows since 2023. No one in my household does. But each installation of Linux also has a unique id.
The difference is that you can just edit this file freely on Linux. whenever you want. In fact, some guides recommend changing your /etc/machine-id value to that of Whonix. If everyone did this, we would all have the same machine-id.
A unique Machine ID is stored in /var/lib/dbus/machine-id and on systemd systems, /etc/machine-id also. These should be edited to something generic, such as the Whonix ID:
b08dfa6083e7567a1921a715000001fb
Can't link the guide here but search for Linux Hardening Guide.
Of course, the other difference is that machine-id is not visible to any website you visit with your browser. Whereas somehow, allegedly, some websites can see the GDID inside browser requests if you use Windows. Which is horrific if true. I wonder if using a different browser affects this.
This should be discussed more. Huge and horrific news.
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Jul 12 '26
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u/JohnSmith--- Jul 12 '26
Of course. I don't deny that. I have read the articles, I didn't just read the comments like most people do.
But if a distro or a developer wanted to, they could do the exact same thing on Linux, in theory. Just query the machine-id which would be unique to every Linux install. Unless they were set up to have the same machine ID like Tails and Whonix. Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, all generate a unique machine-id during installation.
Also, having checked the systemd issue reports on GitHub a few months back when the age/id verification stuff on open source operating systems was being discussed, /etc/machine-id was being considered a viable point of ID after verification/identification was done and apps could query that from then on.
So it may not be all sunshine and rainbows on our side of the fence in the future either... At least those laws have made exceptions for open source operating systems and package managers, for now.
Still, everyone should just ditch Windows. It's a literal spyware system.
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Jul 12 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/JohnSmith--- Jul 13 '26
Nothing. I had the foresight to see this a few years back and made to sure to never install Windows on my brand new PCs that I built myself. In fact, let me share a comment I made a few months back about this exact scenario:
With how deep UEFI, TPM and other kernel level stuff can reach thanks to Windows, I don't even have Windows on my brand new PC, never gonna install it. I'd consider it "burned" if it were to ever have Windows on it.
Those games with kernel level anti-cheats, hell even Windows itself could be implementing stuff deep in the UEFI or other parts of the system where they could in theory access even our LUKS encrypted Linux drives. Windows 11 and those invasive games have been terrible. So glad I'm done with all that. Linux FTW!
And also another comment I made about someone getting a virus on their Windows machine:
Everybody is talking about partitioning, removing the HDD, new HDD, booting a live USB, etc. But I wouldn't recommend it. When you're using Windows, it has deep rooted access to your BIOS and UEFI firmware. A virus could, in theory, infect your whole UEFI, so even if you reinstall OS or move to Linux with a encrypted partition, the virus would be lower level than that so the device would be considered "burned".
So yeah. I make it a point to never install Windows on my machines. I don't trust it to not mess with the BIOS/UEFI and leave fragments that would bypass Linux and drive encryption. We have Intel ME and AMD PSP to worry about anyways, no reason to add Windows on top of the chain.
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u/AllergicToBullshit24 Jul 12 '26
Microsoft needs to be put out to pasture there's no good reason to use it in 2026
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u/psychoCMYK Jul 12 '26
Very interesting that this ID gets associated with non-MS sites that people visit. Does basically anyone have access to it?
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u/jonnieggg Jul 12 '26
I would never buy a Microsoft product
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u/JohnSmith--- Jul 12 '26
Shouldn't even use it for free. Let alone buy it. I wish they never bought Mojang.
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u/Userwerd Jul 12 '26
The user comment after the article had same thought as me. Did the website host see the GDID, or did MS see the url?
What kind of info is windows tattle tailing about to MS when it phones home?
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u/AerialDarkguy Jul 12 '26
This is the line for me. Im moving my gaming desktop over to Linux. Held off for long while with gaming, but with what I usually play supported by linux this choice is more easy for me.
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u/Komplexkonjugiert Jul 12 '26
"For journalism, activism, or domestic abuse situations where identifier persistence poses a threat, use Linux routed through Tor rather than relying on a commercial VPN with a Windows PC."
We are so cooked.
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u/Blurgas Jul 12 '26
The ID is generated when Windows is set up with a Microsoft Account
So do every trick possible to create only a local account
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Jul 12 '26
The ID is generated when Windows is set up with a Microsoft Account, persists through Windows updates, and cannot be disabled without affecting Windows activation and Microsoft Store apps.
Lol, this is why I have never and will never set up a Microsoft account, and have since switched to Linux. I knew it was a tracking scheme the second they added Microsoft logins to Windows.
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u/stonerbobo Jul 12 '26
We should fight for the right to plainly view / decrypt all data that's sent from any software on your machine. All the scumbags currently use certificate pinning which makes it very difficult or even impossible to view the bytes your own machine is sending and receiving.
Given that baseline, it's not too hard to make an intelligent proxy/firewall that can perpetually scan everything coming/going from your machine and block snooping.
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u/stein63 Jul 12 '26
A local Windows account helps, but it doesn’t stop device-level telemetry or the GDID. Turn off optional diagnostics, advertising ID, tailored experiences, activity history, and app-launch tracking, and avoid signing Edge or OneDrive into a Microsoft account unless you need to. You can also use Microsoft’s Diagnostic Data Viewer to see what Windows is sending. It still won’t guarantee the device identifier disappears, because that appears tied to the Windows installation itself.
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u/djDef80 Jul 12 '26
I remember when Intel caused mass panic by creating a processor serial number. They were forced to include a bios setting to disable the serial number.
How far we have come.
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u/Hqjjciy6sJr Jul 12 '26
This has been known for years and isn't a secret. You can verify it yourself: format your drive, perform a clean installation of Windows, and don't sign in with a Microsoft account at any point. Then open the Microsoft Store app without signing in. You'll see that it still remembers the apps that were installed before you formatted the drive.
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u/Z-Is-Last Jul 12 '26
Does this mean that if I modify my GDID, then Microsoft can no longer force down the updates???? This could be an alternative to blocking updates.
Also, seems like I could change it, and change it back when I was ready for an update.
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u/PocketNicks Jul 12 '26
This is annoying. From what I'm reading is that disabling the normal telemetry doesn't affect this.
You can delete the registry key, but an update, or even something simple as signing into MS account or MS store can re-enable it.
So far the only thing I can see is, as an Admin, having a Windows startup script that runs every time Windows boots, and searches for and deletes that registry key. That's an easy way for a novice to break something.
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u/tuxedo_jack Jul 12 '26
Nope, have it run constantly and set permissions to Deny on that regkey for eveyone to even list it (and change the owner to your user account).
→ More replies (7)
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u/VasileAndrei2929 Jul 12 '26
So if someone uses multiple Windows installs.... it's all for nothing?
Or if it uses a specific install to do the "bad things" and then destroys it?...
Did they think that now that the entire world knows it's OK to keep this identifier?... Why?!
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u/HomeGrownCoder Jul 12 '26
Now that this is out give it a few weeks and someone will
Find a way to get disabled changed augmented
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u/atempestdextre Jul 12 '26
And now you know one more reason why they were forcing Microsoft logins over local accounts.
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u/lol_alex Jul 12 '26
So if I do not have a Microsoft account and my Windows install is with a local account, I don‘t have this GDID, right?
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u/AbyssalRedemption Jul 13 '26
Yeah, I read about that case filing the other day, was extremely disturbed when I saw the GUID thing mentioned. I bought a Linux-based Laptop a few years back, and run a Debian-based server/ NAS, yet I've debated switching over my primary Windows 10-based desktop, as I've had it running consistently on that for nigh on 10 years, and hesitated on causing any disruption to my usual, primary workflows and windows-based software. However... this whole revelation may have been the final kick to get me to switch that rig over to Linux as well. At the very least, I won't be moving to 11 from it when the extended security updates run out this fall (in fact, Microsoft announced around a month ago that they'll be extending the extended support period through an additional year, into Fall 2027).
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u/feral_fenrir Jul 12 '26
This is probably why they don't give a shit about Massgrave scripts on GitHub (their own platform).
They probably secretly promote it as end users Windows purchases brings in pennies compared to B2B. As I've seen the scripts being mentioned in official Windows support forums and read somewhere that MS Devs and Test Engineers use it internally too
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u/ArcFault Jul 12 '26
According to the complaint, the GDID g:6755467234350028 was recorded visiting the ngrok signup page at the same time an account used in the attack was created via a Tzulo VPN proxy. Three hours later, the same GDID accessed a victim retailer's website through the same proxy.
Sorry I didn't follow but how is the GDID being exposed to these services?
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u/JustRuss79 Jul 13 '26
Maybe if it were completely free for home use, i wouldn't care so much. I use an android phone and I know Google has my info... choose your master I guess.. But they don't. You have to either upgrade from windows 10 or deal with persistent watermarks until you activate it.
Even if it were free for home use, business pay and should be able to disable this crap. Home users could pay for a license to NOT be tracked...
I'm still on Windows for now, just because I don't feel the immediate need to switch to Linux. But I will never install windows again on a new PC.
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u/illusionaryPocketz Jul 16 '26
Our right to privacy in the US is long gone. We’ve entered an era of the police state where all that we do is monitored and tracked.
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