privacy

GDID Windows – Cut the Tracker That Follows You Even Through a VPN

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Windows assigns a unique 64-bit identifier called GDID to each user account, which Microsoft stores on its servers and continuously links to that user—even when using a VPN. Attempts to delete or disable the GDID locally fail because the system re-downloads it from Microsoft, and disabling telemetry services does not stop its reporting. A solution involves disabling related Windows services and blocking specific Microsoft endpoints via the hosts file, which prevents the GDID from being reported while keeping the Microsoft account functional, but does not erase previously collected identifiers or ensure full anonymity.

https://korben.info/en/gdid-windows-cut-tracker-vpn.html

You Can’t Fully Disable Microsoft’s GDID Windows 11 Tracker, but These Settings Limit What It Captures

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Microsoft has acknowledged that Windows 11 includes a Global Device Identifier (GDID), a persistent, device-level tracker tied to a user’s Microsoft Account with no option to disable it outright. The GDID played a key role in an FBI case by allowing authorities to trace a hacker’s device across VPNs and countries, but its presence raises privacy concerns since it automatically links online activities to a single Windows installation without explicit user consent. While reinstalling Windows generates a new GDID, signing back into the same Microsoft Account allows Microsoft to correlate activity across installations, limiting user control over this identifier.

https://www.windowslatest.com/2026/07/10/you-cant-fully-disable-microsofts-gdid-windows-11-tracker-but-these-settings-limit-what-it-captures/

Ageless Linux — Software for Humans of Indeterminate Age

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Ageless Linux is a Debian-based operating system intentionally designed to be noncompliant with California's Digital Age Assurance Act (AB 1043), which mandates age verification for users. The project highlights how the law disproportionately burdens small and volunteer-driven Linux distributions that cannot implement costly age-gating infrastructure, contrasting them with large corporations like Apple and Google that already comply easily. Ageless Linux rejects age-based user categorization, aiming to preserve user privacy and challenge the regulatory framework by providing an operating system that does not collect or transmit age data, thereby exposing contradictions and enforcement challenges in AB 1043.

https://agelesslinux.org/

A New California Law Says All Operating Systems, Including Linux, Need to Have Some Form of Age Verification at Account Setup

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California mandates operating systems, including Linux, implement age verification during account setup by January 2027, requiring users to disclose age-related data. Compliance concerns emerge, especially regarding enforcement and privacy implications.

https://www.pcgamer.com/software/operating-systems/a-new-california-law-says-all-operating-systems-including-linux-need-to-have-some-form-of-age-verification-at-account-setup/

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