Windows: Microsoft kills "location history"
Microsoft is cleaning up Windows and throwing out functions that are no longer needed. The "location history" is now considered obsolete.
(Image: Erstellt mit KI in Bing Designer durch heise online / dmk)
A function in Windows that Microsoft is now removing from the operating system has received little attention. The “location history” has now been added to the list of deprecated features.
(Image:Â Screenshot / dmk)
As Microsoft explains in the entry on the list of “deprecated features”, i.e., obsolete functions in Windows operating systems, the company now wants to dispose of location history and remove it from Windows.“We are declaring location history as a deprecated feature and removing it,” the developers write there. “The API allowed Cortana to access a 24-hour history of device locations if the feature was active,” they add. The aforementioned API was only accessible to Microsoft developers or those with special rights, and in particular the Cortana search app.
Microsoft: No more storage of location history
With the removal of location history, location data is no longer stored locally. “The associated settings will also be removed from 'Settings' – 'Privacy and security' – 'Location'”, the developers add.
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As Microsoft appears to be making a specific connection with the Cortana search function, the removal is now an expected step. Microsoft already removed the Cortana app from Windows in mid-2023. The AI tool Copilot has since taken its place.
(Image:Â Screenshot / dmk)
Location history is also currently an issue at Google. The location history data previously stored in the cloud will be deleted in May unless users take action. Google has already warned all customers about this several times in emails. Google is shifting the storage of tracking data called “timeline” locally to smartphones. The data will no longer be stored there for 18 months, but will be deleted after just three months.
(dmk)
