XBox Series X & S

XBox Series X & S

Microsoft
Wi-Fi

Review date: Nov. 8, 2021

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Mozilla says

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People voted: Not creepy

Microsoft's upgraded, powerful Xbox X series and the smaller, cheaper S series have been around for a year now and they're still hard find in stock most places, If you're lucky enough to have one, that 4K, Ultra HD, up to 120 fps power boost is great for games like Halo Infinite, Forza, Fable, Destiny, and more.

What could happen if something goes wrong?

First off, SET UP TWO-FACTOR AUTHENTICATION! If you don't set up two-factor authentication, someone could hack into your Xbox account and buy a bunch of games at your expense. That could be costly and you don’t want that headache.

Microsoft made a change to the privacy policy right before it started selling its new Xbox consoles in 2020. They announced they will no longer collect voice search or speech-to-text data on users. This is good. Especially now that we know Sony will be recording Voice Chats from users with no way to opt out on the PS5 (Sony does this to help combat online abuse, so it’s not a terrible thing, just a good thing to be aware of).

Microsoft does not sell your personal data, which is good. Microsoft says they will use your data to target you with ads on Microsoft properties. Microsoft also says they might share your data with partners like Verizon and Facebook to collect data about your online activity for advertising purposes, and to place their own ads. Finally, Microsoft says they can combine data with third parties, such as data brokers. Be aware though, some of the games you play on the Xbox made by other companies might be collecting and sharing your data and their privacy policies would apply to your personal information. So many freakin’ privacy policies to just play games.

Tips to protect yourself

  • Set up two-factor authenticaion on your XBox account immediately
  • Read XBox's Responsible Gaming guide for safety tips
  • Go into Profile & system > Settings > Account > Privacy & online safety > Xbox privacy and adjust your privacy settings to your comfort level
  • mobile

Can it snoop on me? information

Camera

Device: No

App: Yes

Microphone

Device: No

App: Yes

Tracks location

Device: Yes

App: Yes

What can be used to sign up?

What data does the company collect?

How does the company use this data?

Microsoft does not sell your personal data. When you play games offered through other companies on the platform, you may share your data with those third parties.

How can you control your data?

You can manage your data via the Microsoft Privacy dashboard. https://account.microsoft.com/account/

No retention details are found in the privacy policy.

What is the company’s known track record of protecting users’ data?

Needs Improvement

Microsoft suffered a major hack that left their Microsoft Exchange email service vulnerable and exploited. That hack didn’t affect the privacy of the XBox directly. In December, 2019, 250 million Microsoft internal customer service and support logs were exposed online,

Can this product be used offline?

No

User-friendly privacy information?

No

Hard to find Xbox-specific info in the general Microsoft privacy statement.

Links to privacy information

Does this product meet our Minimum Security Standards? information

Yes

Encryption

Yes

Uses encryption in transit and at rest.

Strong password

Yes

Security updates

Yes

Manages vulnerabilities

Yes

Privacy policy

Yes

Does the product use AI? information

Yes

The Xbox Series X & S utilizes AI for automatically adjusting the color and contrast of images on the screen.

Is this AI untrustworthy?

Can’t Determine

What kind of decisions does the AI make about you or for you?

Is the company transparent about how the AI works?

Yes

Does the user have control over the AI features?

Can’t Determine

*privacy not included

Dive Deeper

  • How to Manage PlayStation, Switch, and Xbox Privacy Settings
    New York Times
  • PS5 vs. Xbox Series X: Security and Privacy Features Compared
    IGN
  • Microsoft Security Shocker As 250 Million Customer Records Exposed Online
    Forbes
  • Xbox Series X ushers in a fantastic change Microsoft hadn’t announced until now

Comments

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