Microsoft Authenticator

"We also share personal data among Microsoft-controlled affiliates and subsidiaries, including for the purposes described in this privacy statement. We also share personal data with vendors or agents working on our behalf for the purposes described in this statement. For example, companies we've hired to provide customer service support or assist in protecting and securing our systems and services may need access to personal data."

Microsoft shares personal data broadly across its corporate family, with vendors, service providers, and third-party partners, creating a wide network of entities with access to user data.

"For these purposes, we combine data we collect from different contexts (for example, from your use of two Microsoft products). For example, Microsoft Store uses information about the apps and services you use to make personalized app recommendations. We use cookies and similar technologies for storing and honoring your preferences and settings, enabling you to sign in, providing interest-based advertising, combating fraud, analyzing how our products perform."

Microsoft explicitly combines data across different products and contexts to build unified user profiles, and uses persistent identifiers like MUID cookies and advertising IDs to track users across Microsoft properties and third-party sites.

"Location data. Data about your device's location, which can be either precise or imprecise. For example, we collect location data using Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) (e.g., GPS) and data about nearby cell towers and Wi-Fi hotspots. Location can also be inferred from a device's IP address or data in your account profile that indicates where it is located with less precision, such as at a city or postal code level."

Microsoft collects both precise GPS location and imprecise location through multiple methods including cell towers, Wi-Fi hotspots, and IP addresses, enabling comprehensive location tracking.

"Device, connectivity, and configuration data. Data about your device, your device configuration, and nearby networks. For example, data about the operating systems and other software installed on your device, including product keys. In addition, IP address, device identifiers (such as the IMEI number for phones), regional and language settings, and information about WLAN access points near your device."

Microsoft collects extensive device data including installed software, product keys, IMEI numbers, nearby Wi-Fi networks, biometric data, contacts, skeletal tracking data from Kinect, and other sensor inputs that go well beyond what's needed for core product functionality.

"Microsoft retains personal data for as long as necessary to provide the products and fulfill the transactions you have requested, or for other legitimate purposes such as complying with our legal obligations, resolving disputes, and enforcing our agreements. Because these needs can vary for different data types, the context of our interactions with you or your use of products, actual retention periods can vary significantly."

Microsoft provides no concrete retention timelines for most data types, using vague criteria like "as long as necessary" and "legitimate purposes," which effectively allows indefinite retention.

"Microsoft Privacy Statement Last Updated: March 2026. This privacy statement explains the personal data Microsoft processes, how Microsoft processes it, and for what purposes. This statement applies to the interactions Microsoft has with you and the Microsoft products listed below, as well as other Microsoft products that display this statement."

The privacy statement is updated unilaterally (e.g., "Last Updated: March 2026") with no described mechanism for obtaining user consent to changes, and continued use of products is governed by whatever the current version states.

"After you submit the request to close your child's account, we will wait 60 days before permanently deleting the account in case you change your mind or need to access something on the account before it is permanently closed and deleted. During the waiting period, the account is marked for closure and permanent deletion, but it still exists."

Microsoft imposes a 60-day waiting period before permanently deleting accounts, during which the account and its data continue to exist in Microsoft's systems.