Companies/big-tech
Microsoft
Current privacy policylast checked 8/15/2026healthy
What Microsoft takes from you. Straight from the captured policy. Tap any row for the exact quote.
Children's dataData about kids under 13 (or local age limits).Disclosed
“For example, we use the age of our customers to assist us in meeting our obligations to protect children’s privacy.”
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Account activityHow and when you use your account.Collected
“Information about your use of Microsoft products, including features you use, searches, commands given, error reports, and support requests.”
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Browsing activityPages you visit and things you tap or click.Collected
“We use cookies to personalize ads based on your activity.”
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Device identifiersSerial numbers and IDs that mark your phone or laptop.Collected
“We use data like device and application type, location, and unique identifiers to activate products.”
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Email addressThe email you sign up or log in with.Collected
“Your first and last name, email address, mailing address, phone number, and other similar contact details.”
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IP addressYour network address, which can reveal rough location.Collected
“IP addresses, device identifiers, nearby networks, and other information about the operating systems and other software installed on your device.”
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LocationWhere you are or where you've been.Collected
“Data about your device’s location, which may be either precise (typically based on GPS, cell tower, or Wi-Fi hotspot location) or imprecise (for example, inferred from an IP address, or city or postal code in your account profile).”
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Your messagesContents of messages, chats, or emails on the service.Collected
“Information in files and messages, emails, chats, calls, meetings, photos, documents, and other media you create or share using Microsoft products.”
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Your nameYour legal or profile name.Collected
“Your first and last name, email address, mailing address, phone number, and other similar contact details.”
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Other dataAdditional data described in the policy.Collected
“Many products include personalized features and use automated processes to tailor your experience based on your data and inferences based on your activities, interests, and location.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1
Payment detailsCards, billing info, or transaction data.Collected
“Details needed to process payments, including credit card numbers and security codes.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1
Phone numberYour mobile or contact number.Collected
“Your first and last name, email address, mailing address, phone number, and other similar contact details.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1
Photos & videosImages and videos you upload or store.Collected
“Images and related data, like picture metadata. For example, we collect the image you provide when you use a Bing image-enabled service or upload an image to Microsoft Copilot.”
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Purchase historyWhat you buy and when.Collected
“Advertising cookies record which ads you’ve seen, which ads you’ve clicked, or the purchases you’ve made after clicking.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1
Voice recordingsAudio of your voice, like assistant commands or calls.Collected
“We may use voice data from support calls for authentication and security purposes.”
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Why they use your data.
AdvertisingTargeting or measuring ads.Yes
“- Advertise and market to you, which includes sending promotional communications, personalized advertising, and presenting relevant offers.”
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AI trainingUsing your data to train AI models.Yes
“As part of our efforts to improve and develop our products, we may use your data to develop and train our AI models.”
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AnalyticsMeasuring how people use the service.Yes
“We use cookies to gather usage and performance data, such as visitor counts and other statistics about our websites and products.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1
Legal reasonsComplying with laws and legal requests.Yes
“We process data to comply with applicable laws. For example, we use the age of our customers to assist us in meeting our obligations to protect children’s privacy”
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PersonalizationTailoring content and recommendations to you.Yes
“We combine data collected from different contexts or obtained from third parties to give you a more seamless, consistent, and personalized experience”
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Running the productMaking the service itself work.Yes
“- Provide our products, which includes updating, securing, and troubleshooting, as well as providing support and making recommendations.”
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ResearchStudies and product research.Yes
“We also use the data to operate our business, which includes analyzing our performance, meeting our legal obligations, developing our workforce, and doing research.”
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SecurityPreventing fraud and protecting accounts.Yes
“Microsoft is committed to protecting the security of your personal data and uses a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect your personal data from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure.”
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Sharing, retention & your controls.
You can get a copyYou can request the data they hold on you.Good sign
“If you want to exercise your data protection rights for your personal data processed by Microsoft that is not available via the tools we provide or directly through the Microsoft products you use, you can always contact Microsoft”
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You can delete your dataThe policy offers a way to erase your data.Good sign
“If you are signed into Bing with your Microsoft account, you can view and clear your stored search and chat history on your privacy dashboard.”
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Retention period disclosedThe policy says how long data is kept.Disclosed
“When you delete an email or item from a mailbox in Outlook.com, the item generally goes into your Deleted Items folder where it remains for approximately 7 days unless you move it back to your inbox, you empty the folder, or the service empties the folder automatically, whichever comes first. When the Deleted Items folder is emptied, those items remain in our system for up to 30 days before final deletion”
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No controls disclosedThe captured policy doesn't disclose user controls.Good sign
“These choices do not apply to mandatory service communications or other informational messages with their own unsubscribe method.”
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No sharing disclosedThe captured policy doesn't disclose sharing.Disclosed
“Microsoft is committed to protecting the security of your personal data and uses a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect your personal data from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure.”
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You can opt outYou can say no to some uses of your data.Good sign
“many products allow you to turn off personalized features.”
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Shares with third partiesData goes to other companies.Disclosed
“We may share age group information with Microsoft apps and services, as well as third-party apps, so that they can apply appropriate safeguards”
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Retention period not disclosedThe policy doesn't say how long data is kept.Unclear
“Microsoft retains personal data for as long as necessary to provide the products and services you use and to fulfill the transactions you request. We also retain personal data for other legitimate purposes such as operating our business, meeting our contractual and legal obligations, improving and developing our products and services, protecting the safety and security of our systems and customers, and resolving disputes.”
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You can delete your dataThe policy offers a way to erase your data.Says no
“Microsoft Advertising does not collect, process, or disclose personal data that qualifies as “sensitive data” under applicable U.S. state data privacy laws for the”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1
What changed.
No published changes yet.
Full evidence record (34 published claims)
data collected · device id
We found: disclosed
“We use data like device and application type, location, and unique identifiers to activate products.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim af1e9e8e1aff55e16d4ff9bfa4c614a53f8a127c384f650656f1a872ae2a855b
region · global
We found: disclosed
“Microsoft may store and process your personal data in your region, the United States, and any other jurisdiction where Microsoft or its affiliates, subsidiaries, or service providers operate facilities.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 4b36d2b0d83848128e2303db22395a9def85d18f4dd8e1bf338212eb9621668d
data collected · photos
We found: disclosed
“Images and related data, like picture metadata. For example, we collect the image you provide when you use a Bing image-enabled service or upload an image to Microsoft Copilot.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 47baa4000b618eece6dddfe7c0c8d01db12c424ffb569711b8a517374c81d14e
control · opt out
We found: disclosed
“many products allow you to turn off personalized features.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim f4178da6da9dffb8d12d708a90f97bf294acfc151d0ad3912ce4c925bed79d1b
data collected · account activity
We found: disclosed
“Information about your use of Microsoft products, including features you use, searches, commands given, error reports, and support requests.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 9a8ee4eb7a28b3b9273314cbfc4f453306e680bfd6165f4ad8fbf86cd75b85b0
control · deletion
We found: disclosed
“If you are signed into Bing with your Microsoft account, you can view and clear your stored search and chat history on your privacy dashboard.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 184c87df51435b71e22d0d01bc905b182e11fdbcdf50990e9983e5fbcd804f8e
region · US
We found: disclosed
“Microsoft may store and process your personal data in your region, the United States, and any other jurisdiction where Microsoft or its affiliates, subsidiaries, or service providers operate facilities.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 87d668a90806d3a21a0b090d3d06074eec0c0d07eb2e9c3e5fcaa1b30c1c1cb7
purpose · ai training
We found: disclosed
“As part of our efforts to improve and develop our products, we may use your data to develop and train our AI models.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 52895b747392a732274e94325af9115564c85277d38fb9c8cd15db39f45220d9
purpose · advertising
We found: disclosed
“- Advertise and market to you, which includes sending promotional communications, personalized advertising, and presenting relevant offers.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 44f13f7d48696b9865b572d38535cb59d3dc15e185e102d717e624f4c45c8c62
sensitive · children
We found: disclosed
“For example, we use the age of our customers to assist us in meeting our obligations to protect children’s privacy.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim d050bec73d1d888be989bf180f328893465eab185f2d758b6941aa7cb21e0fec
data collected · other
We found: disclosed
“Many products include personalized features and use automated processes to tailor your experience based on your data and inferences based on your activities, interests, and location.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 1298d1488598ba17b7e72eafb533cf45e569aadcc2cb3e76aebcc6b59356b443
purpose · personalization
We found: disclosed
“We combine data collected from different contexts or obtained from third parties to give you a more seamless, consistent, and personalized experience”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim d88ec66be08423c74b484401a52b48da11ebcf0965f21cf13bc8339f16a35473
data collected · purchase
We found: disclosed
“Advertising cookies record which ads you’ve seen, which ads you’ve clicked, or the purchases you’ve made after clicking.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 98349459d9281633cd073ebae6656ab727871f015ba5695661dae6747f234e69
purpose · product
We found: disclosed
“- Provide our products, which includes updating, securing, and troubleshooting, as well as providing support and making recommendations.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 1c2714a9a8b0748fc8a5a9d2b631b6904477075099496dc4e1dc4dfcb0324648
purpose · research
We found: disclosed
“We also use the data to operate our business, which includes analyzing our performance, meeting our legal obligations, developing our workforce, and doing research.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 83f0d69b45a08f61f707632721eae02512363de32b8e14f16159d76045884fd3
purpose · legal
We found: disclosed
“We process data to comply with applicable laws. For example, we use the age of our customers to assist us in meeting our obligations to protect children’s privacy”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim e3cb79fc47b27d27e3064aa13d37930d28aa422a631980d8eaf69ee406c7a408
data collected · phone
We found: disclosed
“Your first and last name, email address, mailing address, phone number, and other similar contact details.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim f932d7508d443b268fb391a6fe2559e508da36feac6de5cb51c62bc1b81effd6
data collected · location
We found: disclosed
“Data about your device’s location, which may be either precise (typically based on GPS, cell tower, or Wi-Fi hotspot location) or imprecise (for example, inferred from an IP address, or city or postal code in your account profile).”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 2cf3ff1e442e78b54d89b061101405c1ddfcdbd159113394b4dd8a088c28534a
sharing · third party
We found: disclosed
“We may share age group information with Microsoft apps and services, as well as third-party apps, so that they can apply appropriate safeguards”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim d9c003e87f9db4a95dba283d3e562e89ea3157f53c1ac938529ba0eafa0333db
data collected · voice
We found: disclosed
“We may use voice data from support calls for authentication and security purposes.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 22529704c14ca059097cdb624a7c21ddfc0f6d428aa580e5ddb2e2c9f8c57b24
control · access
We found: disclosed
“If you want to exercise your data protection rights for your personal data processed by Microsoft that is not available via the tools we provide or directly through the Microsoft products you use, you can always contact Microsoft”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 2294bc3533f47335c200fe5729f22645b83af46d007586d4682d8404f56120cb
data collected · browsing
We found: disclosed
“We use cookies to personalize ads based on your activity.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim c74236b9b2c2a1f5ea029bb332ddd080c4bec7999da260daf970495c278c59cc
control · none disclosed
We found: disclosed
“These choices do not apply to mandatory service communications or other informational messages with their own unsubscribe method.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 32c5a4c68fe89e541d37bcc7ead36065d620ea6f96db22cf669b2d619e80d3bf
purpose · analytics
We found: disclosed
“We use cookies to gather usage and performance data, such as visitor counts and other statistics about our websites and products.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 1da3a6834e746d1a7adf6ee911e48cce975242562c1407994df6fd62e19f2fd2
retention · duration disclosed
We found: disclosed
“When you delete an email or item from a mailbox in Outlook.com, the item generally goes into your Deleted Items folder where it remains for approximately 7 days unless you move it back to your inbox, you empty the folder, or the service empties the folder automatically, whichever comes first. When the Deleted Items folder is emptied, those items remain in our system for up to 30 days before final deletion”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim df632231f5eca62922f8666fd0506948c4f1b4bf0c9bcdf44d7a584bab884df0
retention · unspecified
We found: disclosed
“Microsoft retains personal data for as long as necessary to provide the products and services you use and to fulfill the transactions you request. We also retain personal data for other legitimate purposes such as operating our business, meeting our contractual and legal obligations, improving and developing our products and services, protecting the safety and security of our systems and customers, and resolving disputes.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim f53ffa3930e7c06bf296dc426a2ca89d72bb4f3dc345590196fc793c2cd3f6f4
data collected · ip address
We found: disclosed
“IP addresses, device identifiers, nearby networks, and other information about the operating systems and other software installed on your device.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 639b2fb61f07d3e0137e9db097767dc955816ed3e591c90215e738ec1ff0a074
data collected · payment
We found: disclosed
“Details needed to process payments, including credit card numbers and security codes.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim d45dc5a4eaaf8b7950753950d45db7c5c291576d78de490853dae614931c5876
data collected · name
We found: disclosed
“Your first and last name, email address, mailing address, phone number, and other similar contact details.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 9d8cd165793abe3e414e75e43bce47bb86fb312e3368c25344a89b0e5a72fd9c
data collected · email
We found: disclosed
“Your first and last name, email address, mailing address, phone number, and other similar contact details.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 74601aecaf1c6a571b4e4cda03bdec7d7158f709f904d383a5e43c405a26277f
data collected · messages
We found: disclosed
“Information in files and messages, emails, chats, calls, meetings, photos, documents, and other media you create or share using Microsoft products.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 4e4733291f57a38658312939ff030dc0aca02160b757f44cfd9560b2ad245499
purpose · security
We found: disclosed
“Microsoft is committed to protecting the security of your personal data and uses a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect your personal data from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim d64684e475bf5d9c93283b56d92e7d552072a24376b60ee0154b8cb1ffd416bc
control · deletion
We found: not disclosed
“Microsoft Advertising does not collect, process, or disclose personal data that qualifies as “sensitive data” under applicable U.S. state data privacy laws for the”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim 5a03740fc0e5b4a0ca386426d7f1ccc24c4505ed794defee352b2de5c6c9971d
sharing · none disclosed
We found: disclosed
“Microsoft is committed to protecting the security of your personal data and uses a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect your personal data from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure.”
snapshot 3addc8c3-ef30-490a-b3dc-458d6401e1dc · revision 1 · source region global Evidence details
claim c851ea0ce2c8973fab6c5e03f35a0c17ba5519ba4909860ba4946a2af0cf2a1f
Ask about this policy
The cited assistant is off. Read the published disclosures above. This is not legal advice.