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Gay kids could be outed to their parents by the new Windows 10
Windows 10 could be outing kids to their parents by sending them their browser history.
With the new update, Microsoft allows parents to get ‘weekly reports’ of absolutely everything their children are looking at online.
While it can protect kids from adult content, there are fears it will be used to out young people to their families before they are ready.
The feature, which is automatically switched on, lets parents create child accounts with controls and restraints placed on them.
Windows then sends an email about websites the child visited, the hours per day they spent on them and how many minutes they used on each of the apps.
Some say it damages children’s privacy and is ‘creepy’.
Speaking to Gay Star News, gay parent Colin Rice said: ‘I had a mom that smothered me, and I know she would have done this to me if it was around when I was young.
‘This could be very damaging to parent/child relationships. And apart from that, it’s just really creepy. It’s the modern equivalent to reading your kid’s diary. You need to make sure they’re safe, but you need to let them have their own space as well.’
The feature is optional. If you go onto your Family account, turn off ’email weekly reports to me’ and ‘activity reporting’, then it won’t be an issue. This allows children to keep their privacy but to also not be allowed to access to adult content.
A Microsoft spokesperson has said the feature was added to ensure parents would be able to keep their children safe online.
They added: ‘Windows 10 puts customers in control by giving them choices about how information is used to deliver personalized services and experiences.
‘We also offer customers a number of options in Windows 10 privacy settings, and customers can adjust their Windows 10 privacy settings at any time.’
We asked Microsoft to respond to the question on outing and the danger this causes directly. They ignored this question in their initial reply. We have repeated our request and are awaiting a further reply.
The post Gay kids could be outed to their parents by the new Windows 10 appeared first on Gay Star News.
Joe Morgan
www.gaystarnews.com/article/gay-kids-could-be-outed-to-their-parents-by-the-new-windows-10/
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