Windows 10 spying and data collection can be stopped with Virtual Machine? [SOLVED]

[SyncroScales]

Hello,

While using Linux Mint (or another Distro) I was wondering if Windows 10 spying and data collection can be stopped with a Virtual Machine? Would sandboxing with Firejail do this also?

And another question is, If I had a Windows OS in Linux, can the program Internet Download Manager work within Windows and the Virtual Machine?

Thank you.

[Neil Edmond]

As long as you keep Windows disconnected from internet, then yes you can stop telemetry.

[catweazel]

If you want to stop telemetry and still connect Windwoes 10 to the internet, use W10Privacy and O&O Shutup.

As for IDM, it will work fine in a VM.

[MintBean]

As a previous poster mentioned- you're better off keeping your Win10 VM off the internet- otherwise it can play all the same old spy games.

Linux has a bunch of great download managers. uGet is well worth a look.

[lmintnewb2]

Like everyone else is saying, SERIOUSLY DOUBT IT. Once win10 has access to the internet VM or not, it's going to make every effort to do as it's been designed and engineered to do. So yeah ... that includes any and every M$ built in "feature" to spy on you and send whatever information back to them about you.

Being tech and esp gnu/Linux am 100% certain there are ways to mitigate it, control it ... even spoof it or whatever so that no or false data about you and your computer usage gets collected and sent. The amount of time, trouble and headaches that has to be involved just isn't, nor could possibly ever be interesting or important enough to me to bother having to go through all that to run win10.

Personally went exclusively gnu/Linux and overwrote win10 on this box as I had done with win8.1 on my previous laptop. Just came to believe the best solution is to simply not play M$'s games. After experiencing win8.1, spending DAYS learning to tweak and optimize it, including finding and disabling as many of the built in spyware features the OS had and knowing I'd almost definitely missed a few despite TONS of effort ... NO MORE for me. As again ... just figure sometimes the best way to win the game, is to refuse to play.

But if ever bumped my head and did choose to reinstall anything window$ ever again. Would definitely be under a gnu/Linux host and using a true hypervisor like KVM, not a less than so put out by Oracle who outright has ties with M$ anyway. Google searches such as this. I absolutely under no circumstances trust M$ have little to no reason to trust Oracle either, shrugs.

Whereas KVM has and is enjoying wide spread native gnu/Linux support and development and has long since been officially integrated into the Linux kernel for long and long. Pointless 2 cents. Just concluding I can't outcrap a Corp like M$, they've got it down to a science, tradition, standard operating procedure and have me beat out with decades more experience. Though personally again just won't bother putting myself through all the time, hassles and headaches even trying to out-maneuver them anyway.

[dark]

Keep Windows 10 VM disconnected from internet. You should also blacklist MS servers in /etc/hosts on Linux so there wont be a problem when some windows program in VM needs internet access. You can copy addresses from here to /etc/hosts.

[SyncroScales]

Excellent information.

So what is the situation with Microsoft "buying" a distribution of Linux and pretending they own all of Linux? Then probably not paying anything into Linux for the developers, Linus Trovold and the users?

Is Microsoft injecting code into Linux and interfering with or spying on Linux users? They use open-sourced material for their products, including Linux code. But how sucessful and how hostile is Microsoft with what is Linux and their growing users or the other free Operating systems?

[Mattyboy]

Excellent information.

So what is the situation with Microsoft "buying" a distribution of Linux and pretending they own all of Linux? Then probably not paying anything into Linux for the developers, Linus Trovold and the users?

Is Microsoft injecting code into Linux and interfering with or spying on Linux users? They use open-sourced material for their products, including Linux code. But how sucessful and how hostile is Microsoft with what is Linux and their growing users or the other free Operating systems?

Microsoft have been 'active' in certain areas of Linux development for quite some time, specifics I've not read up on, but you have to assume this has something to do with most web servers running on Linux. Plus you have 'the Internet of things', a lot running Linux.... only the other day I was watching a show about the development of autonomous cars the team using Ubuntu... phones.... Involvement through necessity.

They have got 'in bed' with Canonical which produces Ubuntu, upon which Mint is based. You can now install Ubuntu bash shell on Windows 10 and run it though Powershell. ( you can even, with a little fiddling run Linux GUI programs ) They're working on introducing other Linux flavors too. This is a primarily for the use of developers. ( Works great BTW ).

Microsoft injecting code into Linux itself, specifically for 'spying' is extremely very unlikely, propriety vendors don't want you seeing the code. Besides putting anything like that in your distribution is pretty much a guarantee to kill it dead. The very clever bunch of 'top' Linux guys will flag that code and scream hell. The advantage of the code being open, everyone can see it.

Microsoft could buy a company, Canonical, for example but it can't buy Linux as its under GNU General Public License.

[Pierre]

getting Linux as a shell, to work under win-10 is primary aimed at developers,
& who would benefit from such an arrangement ATM.

the vast majority of Linux users would view such an arrangement with deep suspicion.
as they have some valid reasons to avoid anything that is Microsoft Based - like it's Windows System.

but, you wouldn't be able to stop any win-10 telemetry, by running it as a Guest System, within any Linux Host,
as you would still have to block it's telemetry from the win-10 itself, rather than from the Linux Host.

[lmintnewb2]

So what is the situation with Microsoft "buying" a distribution of Linux and pretending they own all of Linux? Then probably not paying anything into Linux for the developers, Linus Trovold and the users?

Was about to but not even going there, seems a simple question, a real understanding of it is a massively complex thing, going back decades to present day and including what the future's going to bring is the subject for a book ( or several of them which are already widely in circulation), not a forum post. Though will babble a bit about it.

Depends, if M$ were to acquire a company who has patent or property right to a given major piece of software widely used in gnu/Linux, then hire a bunch of lawyers to have it's right to ownership enforced and sue anyone who doesn't follow the law. Then in this ridiculous hypothetical situation. All of gnu/Linux upstream and projects would possibly have to use and develop something else or face the consequences.

Depends on which license, which software is covered under. If curious visit wikipedia there's just too many to comment on, some restrictive (some restrictive to whatever degree), some so free it's anything goes. You can actually sell the software or sell support for it, modify it in any way a person is capable and redistribute it for any purpose etc etc etc. Possibly even changing the license that software is distributed under during the process, making it more restrictive. Again would depend upon many things.

ie: Redhat, makes over 1billion dollars per yr doing so and not every piece of software they develop is likely to be fully GPL. Though that's understandable, if I spend 42 million dollars paying developers to create a piece of software for my Corp, then yeah, I'm not uber inclined to say here you go everybody, please take as much advantage of this as ya can ! God bless humanity !!!! Also note that I don't doubt in the least that Redhat has some of the absolute best of the best nixers on the planet in their employ and they do donate a metric CRAPTON of $ and developer contribs to the Linux kernel's development.

Far as I'm aware a HUGE percentage of the most valuable software involved with gnu/Linux is owned under a trust, with much protections built into to ensure that it stays open source, thus freely available to all.

Linus Torvalds is independently wealthy and has been forever but he still get's paid by MANY parties for staying at the helm of the Linux kernel's development. He never HAS to work a day in his life. He chooses to because the Nix kernel is his life's work and baby and would consider him one of a handful of people with the knowledge and skill in the world to do what he does. Also there are TONS of people making very nice livings who sole and specific job is developing the kernel. Offering improvements, patching it ... this, that ETC. Anyway, again ... don't really even want to try to do it justice. Anyone really interested get yourself a book ( or 424bks) about this and many other open source related subjects and read until your eyeballs bleed.

[lmintnewb2]

Oops, one more addition to this cause it's interesting and/or amusing. Microsoft actually contributes more than a bit annually to the Linux kernel's development. Though it's for features they have a self-interest in or mostly attempts to get support for their technology integrated into the kernel, rather than a good will toward men and peace to all gesture.

For example look at (google) Microsoft kernel contributions vs Canonical Inc (aka: Ubuntu). Not that I have any right to point a finger in the least, as to date my actual contributes to the Linux kernel total out to be = 0/ZERO.

Dang it and one more, look up the GAZILLION quotes directly from Linus Torvalds himself. Where he makes it crystal clear, open source to great extent and gnu/Linux is not a let's all join hands and sing kumbayah thing, never was ... still isn't.

It was an I develop this thing and give it to you, you develop improvements on it and share it back with me, I scratch your back because I benefit, you do same and on and on. More people became involved, snowball effect. Some of which did have the let's join hands and sing intent at heart, ie: GNU.

[SyncroScales]

How all of this works is interesting. I understand that if someone invests time or money that it is reasonable to want something back. I'll watch or read some more interviews with Linus and the open-sourced stuff.

So Canonical Inc is Ubuntu and we on this forum are using Mint distributions. I just want to make sure, we are not technically using Microsoft Windows, even if it looks similar? I am concerned about the NSA, data harvesting and copy-rights being used only by the few with money who expect to be exempt from the law due to copying what is on your computer then using it or selling it. I have seen videos online about how Linus was approached for a back-door by the NSA. I have read a few discussions about that on this forum.

Thanks again for the information about Windows 10 and how it works in a virtual machine.

[lmintnewb2]

^ Definitely welcome, hang in there and absolutely you ARE NOT using Microsoft while using Linux Mint or ubuntu. Though going into that subject, while yeah have learned more than a tad about it, is still really tedious to try to explain to someone newest to the subject. Something to take up with google.

ie: "What does based off ubuntu mean". Linux Mint is based off of ubuntu but different and I think better for many various reasons. Just as ubuntu is based off of Debian, which I consider Debian proper vastly superior again for many reasons in my view. Some technical, some moral/ethical ... some just the way I feel about it and view things etc. To be honest Canonical Inc = ubuntu has also contributed plenty of stuff to open source and gnu/Linux. Attracting more users to it, their wiki and all the information it's users share about gnu/Linux are quite extensive and really good quality.

I should stop being such a butthead on it but overall it's just how I feel about Canonical Inc and some of the many things they've done and being a Debian fanboi too. Which is absolutely nothing against the people who like/use ubuntu I don't have any right to judge or criticize them.

[tho9504]

Wanted to Confirm:
Windows 10 came with my new laptop on 256 SSD drive. There was free bay for another harddrive, so i put 1 Tb hardrive and installed LM 18.2 on that drive. Been using LM 18.2 for past 4-6 months. I had to change Boot sequence to "Legacy" in BIOS so it boots directly to my Linux harddrive.

Now my question. Even though windows is not being used, do it still send telemetry of what i am doing in LM?

[Aleron Ives]

Windows 10 has to be running in order to send telemetry, so as long as you boot Mint instead of Windows, it can't send anything.

[jimallyn]

I just want to make sure, we are not technically using Microsoft Windows, even if it looks similar?

NO, we are NOT using Windows.

[catweazel]

Like everyone else is saying, SERIOUSLY DOUBT IT. Once win10 has access to the internet VM or not, it's going to make every effort to do as it's been designed and engineered to do. So yeah ... that includes any and every M$ built in "feature" to spy on you and send whatever information back to them about you.

Complete and utter FUD. W10Privacy and O&O Shutup fix it.

[Pierre]

unless You or someone else, goes further into this stuff,
it will be difficult to know what Ubuntu / Microsoft actually contributes to the Linux Kernel.
- it's the Kernel itself, that is classed as Linux & everything else in based upon that bit . . .
something like placing a coat / cover / shell over the Linux Kernel . .
and then the Debian Team places a Coat over that,
then the Ubuntu Team places it's coat / cover over that,
- the LinuxMint Team places a coat of many colours over that part
and some other team places another coat over that part - - and so on ..

[lmintnewb2]

Sure thing chief, go ahead and post a detailed and truly technical overview of which I'm sure you have no real idea what you're talking about and one of those people who board up and booby trap the front door on your system but leave 3 backdoor(s) and all it's windows wide open, not having any idea of it. If you do run window$ am sure they're beating you at every turn in terms of technical skill and knowledge. I did fix it ... by no longer using window$. A 100% cure for any M$ related privacy/security or maintenance and performance issues.

[Fred Barclay]

Like everyone else is saying, SERIOUSLY DOUBT IT. Once win10 has access to the internet VM or not, it's going to make every effort to do as it's been designed and engineered to do. So yeah ... that includes any and every M$ built in "feature" to spy on you and send whatever information back to them about you.

Complete and utter FUD. W10Privacy and O&O Shutup fix it.

Are you sure of that? I'm not.

I just want to make sure, we are not technically using Microsoft Windows, even if it looks similar?

No worries, we're definitely not!

videos online about how Linus was approached for a back-door by the NSA.

Presumably no one (besides Linus, of course) knows for certain if he wasn't simply joking at the time.

Re the original question, you could run Windows 10 in VirtualBox and keep the virtual network adapter disconnected at all times. In that case W10 would still collect data but it wouldn't be able to send any of it to Microsoft.