Out of the box, most computers, browsers and online accounts are set to share a fair amount of information: what you search for, where you are, which apps you use and which ads you might click. You can’t avoid all data collection, but ten minutes with the right settings reduces it a lot.
Windows
Open Settings → Privacy & security.
General
Turn off: – Let apps show me personalized ads by using my advertising ID – Show me suggested content in the Settings app
Diagnostics & feedback
- Turn off Send optional diagnostic data. Windows still sends the required minimum.
- Turn off Tailored experiences.
Location
Turn off Location services entirely if you don’t use it, or scroll down and switch it off for individual apps that don’t need it. Weather and maps do. Most others don’t.
Camera and Microphone
Review the list of apps allowed to use each one, and switch off anything that has no reason to.
Mac
Open System Settings → Privacy & Security.
- Location Services: turn off for apps that don’t need it.
- Camera, Microphone, Screen & System Audio Recording: review which apps have access.
- Analytics & Improvements: turn off sharing if you prefer.
- Apple Advertising: turn off Personalized Ads.
Your web browser
Your browser sees more of your life than any other app.
- Block third-party cookies. These are the main way advertisers follow you from site to site.
- Chrome: Settings → Privacy and security → Third-party cookies
- Edge: Settings → Privacy, search, and services → Tracking prevention (choose Balanced or Strict)
- Safari and Firefox block most cross-site tracking by default.
- Review site permissions. In your browser’s Site settings, check which websites can use your location, camera, microphone and notifications. Remove any you don’t recognize.
- Review your extensions. An extension can often read every page you visit. Remove the ones you don’t use.
Your online accounts
- Google: go to myaccount.google.com and run the Privacy Checkup. You can pause or auto-delete Web & App Activity, Location History and YouTube History, and turn off personalized ads.
- Microsoft: visit account.microsoft.com/privacy to view and clear the data linked to your account.
- Facebook and Instagram: in Accounts Center, review Ad preferences and Your activity off Meta technologies, which shows what other websites and apps share with Meta.
Good privacy habits
- Say no to “Allow notifications?” and location requests unless there’s a clear reason.
- Decline non-essential cookies on cookie banners.
- Think before you install. Free apps and extensions often pay their way with your data.
- Use a password manager and two-factor authentication. Privacy doesn’t mean much if someone else can sign in as you.
Don’t panic
None of these settings is an emergency, and changing them won’t break your computer. Some features, like local weather or “find my device,” genuinely need your location. The goal is simply to share on purpose, not by default.
The bottom line
Spend ten minutes on your computer’s privacy settings, your browser’s cookie and permission settings, and the privacy checkups for your Google, Microsoft and Meta accounts. It’s one of the easiest ways to take back some control over your information.
