The Windows OS reports - back to Microsoft - lots of data about your use of the machine, as do some of the third party programs you've installed since. You may have altered some security and shared information settings during set-up, using tools made available by Microsoft. And, yet, for each update of the OS some of these settings may get overwritten during the update, in accordance with Microsoft policy.

This program delves deeply into privacy and telemetry setting, allowing you to control much more of this data exchange, increasing computer performance; and to re-set any changes that may have been overwritten during updates. One such example is the reporting of your location. Another is the automatic saving of your log-in information by a browser, and crash reporting (although I like that one). You can also turn off Defender, if you have a better malware app installed.

Use the colour-coded hints, regarding a level of safety, with respect to turning off some features.

• Red? Don't do it... likely to cause problems.
• Orange? Maybe do it... but could cause a problem.
• Green? Should be fine to ban it.

Since I was unfamiliar with some of the brief, one-line descriptions of each setting, it was enlightening to be able to click on each for a full description.

Fortunately, this latest version limits certain changes, depending on the user; be it a normal user, administrator, or for the entire local machine. Recovery is a one click operation, or use the included / recommended System Recovery.

As you can see by the screen shots, 'ShutUp' discovered that my laptop remembered only four or five of the possible Green settings that I must have made manually when first firing up the computer. It offered to change many more 'Greens'.

System requirements:

Platform: Windows 10 / 11, including 22H2

Version: 1.9.1432

Languages: English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Russian and Chinese (simplified)

Download Size: 1.72 MB no-install for this exe file, it is portable

Install Size: same

Licence: FREE (no ads, pop-ups, or crap-ware)

Rating:

Download Site here.