Microsoft Is Downloading 6GB of Windows 10 Updates Without User’s Consent

[rubidium]

Headline is misleading. They do have consent. This is one reason I don't allow automatic updates.

MS statement: "For individuals who have chosen to receive automatic updates through Windows Update, we help upgradable devices get ready for Windows 10 by downloading the files they’ll need if they decide to upgrade."

[pdkl95]

First, default settings are never "consent".

Second, even if they did consent to automatic updates, that obviously applies to updating the current product they purchased. Upgrading to a different model is obviously not what people expect. Most people expect that their car will receive necessary updates (recall notices), which obviously doesn't include exchanging the car for next years model without some sort of additional contract.

Besides, it's obvious why Microsoft is forcing out the download - they are using download numbers in their their marketing strategy. (i.e. the astroturf headlines claiming "{N} Million User Download Windows 10 in {TimePeriod}")

[belorn]

What consent is that if people don't understands the facts, implications, and future consequences of the action. Worse, updates has an common perception to be small security fixes.

Should we call it uninformed consent? tricked consent? non-binding consent?

If we want to use legal terms, is 6G download ordinarily and reasonably to be contemplated by the user?

[pdabbadabba]

I think this is a stretch. While they may have users' consent in the broadest, legalistic sense, I think it is doubtful that users who chose to receive automatic updates would expect that this would extend to a 6 GB download of an entirely new version of the OS. This is not your usual Windows update, and is probably not the sort of thing users have in mind when they opt in for automatic updates.

[astrodust]

OS X keeps harassing me to update to the latest version because I have automatic updates on and haven't turned the notifications off, but it hasn't gone and downloaded the new OS pre-emptively without my consent.

Asking first wouldn't hurt, you know!

[itg]

So if people don't want gigabytes of data downloaded they have no use for, they have to turn off an option that gives them timely security updates.

[robrobrob]

Windows 10 Home edition doesn't allow you to turn off automatic updates (or at least I haven't seen an option to do so).

I did manage to turn off automatically seeding the updates to others, which I also find to be egregious.

[FilterSweep]

I'm extremely disappointed that I had "turned off" my development work PCs automatic updates, however after a few weeks I found the telemetry update (KB3068708) for Windows 7 installed fully without my consent.

I had "Download updates but let me choose whether to install them," selected in Windows Update for this category of update. I did not choose to install this, and I was made aware from a HN thread made a few weeks ago.

The update was visible, at that time, but not installed. Now, a few weeks later, the update is on my computer. I believe the update was actually installed during an unrelated security update which I had allowed.

I'm wondering if I'll have to use external scripts of my own or third party to remove the telemetry bug on my computer.

[pachydermic]

This is really infuriating... Microsoft, what the hell?

I really hope steam machines take off (and stay relatively open). As soon as I'm happy with the number of games Linux supports I'm dropping windows like a rock.

[psykovsky]

So... never?

[johnward]

I don't get the "without consent" part. If you have automatic updates on you consent to them automatically downloading things.

[melling]

It's crazy that Microsoft gets so much heat for trying everything it can to get people to its latest OS. By this time next week, a couple hundred million people will be running iOS 9. Within six months they should have 85-90% of their users on it. This makes it better for Apple, developers, and the users. Windows needs a little more of an "onward" mentality.

[pdabbadabba]

I'm not sure all the outrage against MS is justified since we're just talking about a large download, not any change to the user's system, or sharing of information, etc. (Though I might feel differently if my bandwidth were metered.)

But I also can't fathom how so many on this thread are willing to conclude that users consented to this by enabling automatic updates. Because, of course, you don't just consent to have Windows download any old "thing" when you enable automatic updates. You only consent to have it download updates!

While the definition of "update" is surely ambiguous and not set in stone, it should surely be guided (I would think) by the sorts of things Microsoft has called "Windows Updates" in the past. And I don't think there is a good argument that this would include a 6 GB download of an entirely new version of the OS.

[9872]

Expecting users to understand how they configured their computers? How naive can you get?

[anakha]

For anyone running Windows 7 or 8.1 that wants to stop the Windows 10 upgrade pop-ups or the download if the PC hasn't already downloaded it, uninstall and hide KB3035583.

[malux85]

Holy smoke - this isn't very good.

My parents in NZ only get 1 or 2 GB a month ... this would have cost them a fortune.

Fortunately I switched them to mac last year.

Microsoft : You suck.

[wyldfire]

iOS downloads updates in advance of you agreeing to executing them. Maybe OS X does the same?

I suppose iOS, Windows, and others all have an opt-out for this feature.

[AjithAntony]

Windows 8 and up can accommodate metered connections

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-8/metered-interne...

[9872]

I think you will find that it is your parents' ISP who sucks.

[tbrock]

Yeah but, if unpatched, it would have downloaded more as part of a botnet.

[draw_down]

Claiming consent because automatic updates are on is really, really a stretch. Strikes me as disingenuous. I'm very surprised they've done this, it just seems so stupid and prone to backfire.

[pasbesoin]

In yet another fashion, MS demonstrating its considerable disconnect from and lack of understanding of (and/or apparent will to understand) a significant portion of its "average users".

A lot of people have space and bandwidth limitations. We don't all live it the land of huge capacity and unmetered fiber connections.

[brandon272]

I wouldn't argue that I haven't given consent if I have "download updates automatically" in my settings.

That being said, Microsoft should use better judgment in terms of checking for available disk space (i.e. don't auto download 6GB worth of updates unless 20GB+ space is available on the drive) and not saturating customer connections since the update is by no means critical (i.e. limit it to 10% of the user's bandwidth)

[lukeschlather]

I don't think 20GB is enough to make 6GB a trivial amount. I'd say more like 100GB.

MS needs to prompt when downloading amounts of data over a few hundred megabytes, period. There are still places in the world where a prompt is required even for amounts measured in megabytes.

[takeda]

update vs upgrade

[0x0]

ISPs with metered subscribers are going to make a killing this month!

[Karunamon]

Isn't there an on-by-default option that causes Windows to behave differently wrt. updates if you're on a metered connection? Still, it's on the user to mark their connection as metered...

[A010]

So, basically update means upgrade now?

[tdees40]

I feel sorry for New Zealanders, where the internet is typically metered...

[ebarock]

What has Microsoft done with user consent?

[biot]

Every week I adjust my (icon bar?) settings to change the "Get Windows 10" application back to "Show only notifications". Windows keeps resetting it to "Show icons and notifications". Perhaps I should file that as a bug report.

[teaneedz]

So why are we allowing Microsoft to get away with it?

[x5n1]

Why are we allowing any of the corporations, governments, and police departments to get away with any of the stupid shit they continuously do? Mostly because it would take a significant act of power to do anything about it, power which we don't have and even if we do, we do not wish to exercise. The exercising of which would probably cause more problems in the short term than it would solve. Most people will not do anything about such problems.

[pdkl95]

As long as MS gets paid, they will do what they want, so stop paying them. Stop giving them revenue directly, and stop giving them market share that that they profit from indirectly.

Anybody that continues to use their products is asking for more of this crap. Some may complain that their business depends on Windows; that's unfortunate, but why didn't they have a second source for all mission critical dependencies?

[9872]

Because automatically keeping all Windows users on the latest version makes the internet safer for everyone.

[mirages]

Short script to disable that behavior (and telemetry)

https://gist.github.com/Citillara/3ad19ce3314a0964758f

[lotso]

It seems Microsoft's position is that if a user has auto-updates on, they have consented to downloading the installer for Windows 10.

[sp332]

The default selection is to download and install updates automatically. You'd think they would check for available disk space beforehand though.

[xtrumanx]

Anyone know what the "$Windows.~BT" folder is would supposedly be located?

[Alupis]

in the root of the C:\ drive (it's a hidden directory)

[VOYD]

That's funny, I don't see that on my two Win8 machines.