Boy, the good ole days are gone when it comes to Windows. I am posting just to help anybody that doesn’t know. This is like a creepy wire tap. If you are actually using Windows 11, make sure to disable and or reduce telemetry in Windows 11 (Privacy). If that actually helps, I am sure there are more ways they send data back but the video link is a simple how to for the telemetry.
It’s not that hard really… application-level firewall, only allow the apps you actually use. Or you could block all access from your router except to a proxy, and then configure just the apps you use to use the proxy. Eliminates 99.9% of unwanted outbound traffic.
Many other OSes, distros and apps phone home/have telemetry too (yes even Linux ones), it’s not like this is some egregious behavior nobody else does.
Most distros are forthcoming about telemetry if they have any, and they tend to be opt in rather than opt out, and even when they’re opt out they actually respect your choice.
Telemetry as a tool is useful and it makes little sense to bash it as a whole, but you’re comparing the results of very different design philosophies.