Spybot Anti-Beacon

Privacy protection moved to the spotlight ever since the release of Windows 10. The telemetry settings included in the latest OS iteration are supposedly designed to improve the overall experience, but more and more users are concerned about their private data and the way Microsoft uses it. As a consequence, the number of applications that can block tracking services are now increasing, and one of them goes by the name of Spybot Anti-Beacon.

No installation is required when using Spybot Anti-Beacon, so just double-click on the executable file to launch it. Usage is very simple, and no restore point is automatically created, although you are advised to create one beforehand, just to be on the safe side of things.

There are various settings Spybot Anti-Beacon can tamper with. There are checkboxes to choose the ones you want but they are not visible unless you choose to 'Show Options'. So don't think that it's all or nothing with Spybot Anti-Beacon and settle for the default list of settings, as you are free to choose the ones to apply. Spybot Anti-Beacon displays short explanations of the registry keys, tasks or services each option will modify. This way, you'll know what exactly are you doing. An universal 'Undo' button is there, so you can revert the changes anytime you want to.

Spybot Anti-Beacon can block telemetry-related hosts and services, restrict the telemetry group policy and automatically block apps that use the advertising ID. It can tamper with other group policies, such as the CEIP (Consmer Experience Improvement Program), AIT (Application Impact Telemetry), Steps Recorder Group Policy or WiFi Sense, in order to prevent data collection without the user's permission.

Optional settings enable you to disable web search and Cortana, remove OneDrive and block the remote registry service. For these, you get to pick the settings to apply, with undo options for each.

Spybot Anti-Beacon is a new attempt to reach the privacy protection goal when using Windows 10, providing a quick and easy way to disable telemetry services, configure group policies and block hosts.

However, there is still room for improvement to meet the users' requirements. At the moment, there are competitor applications that do more. For instance, it would be great to have the application disable the access of apps to wireless connections, block localization access and services, disable the automatic Windows updates or the feedback reminders.