Safer Networking, the developers of Spybot have released a new tool fro Windows 10, called Spybot Anti-Beacon, that allows Windows 10 users to immunize their computers and changes settings, so that Windows 10 phones home less. Spybot Anti-Beacon is a standalone tool which was designed to block and stop the various tracking (telemetry) issues present in Windows 10. It has since been modified to block similar tracking functionality in Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 operating systems.

Concerns have been raised about Windows 10 privacy settings, with users fearing rightly or wrongly that Windows 10 collects a lot of data, which it send home to Microsoft. Seeing that there was currently no good tool which can safely disable tracking in Windows 10, Spybot decided to release this tool.

Once you have downloaded the tool, run the executable file. You will see the following window. Create a system restore point first and then click on Immunize.

This will disable the following:

• Telemetry Hosts
• Telemetry Services
• Consumer Experience Improvements Program
• Application Impact Telemetry
• Steps Recorder
• Wi-Fi Sense
• Apps using advertising ID
• P2P Windows Updates outside local network.

If you wish to reverse the changes, click Undo, or go back to the created system restore point. Anti-Beacon is small, simple to use, and is provided free of charge. It was created to address the privacy concerns of users of Windows 10 who do not wish to have information about their PC usage sent to Microsoft. Simply clicking “Immunize” on the main screen of Anti-Beacon will immediately disable any known tracking features included by Microsoft in the operating system.