That eye peering over your shoulder will be zooming in:
In a move that could rankle privacy advocates, Microsoft said Monday that it is adding the PC equivalent of a flight data recorder to the next version of Windows, in an effort to better understand and prevent computer crashes.
The tool will build on the existing Watson error-reporting tool in Windows but will provide Microsoft with much deeper information, including what programs were running at the time of the error and even the contents of documents that were being created. Businesses will also choose whether they want their own technology managers to receive such data when an employee’s machine crashes.
Microsoft claims consumers will be able to control what information is being transmitted. Most people will probably just check “yes” without knowing what they are consenting to, but okay. I just wonder how far off we are from the day when Microsoft, or someone else, will be required to report when people are using their computers for “bad” things (e.g., visiting certain websites, copying or downloading copyrighted files). This could end up be another tool authorities use to monitor what people are doing.