Collection and Use of Information
When you participate, basic information about your computer and how you use your programs is collected. These reports are sent to Microsoft, where we use them to help improve the features our customers use most often and to create solutions to common problems.
You can choose to participate in the Customer Experience Improvement Program on a product-by-product basis, usually when you first install a Microsoft product. To change your participation later, click the Help menu in most Microsoft programs, and then click Customer Feedback Options.
CEIP reports generally include information about:
•Configuration, such as how many processors are in your computer, how many network connections you use, which version of Windows is running, and if some features such as Bluetooth wireless technology or high-speed USB connections are turned on.
•Performance and reliability, such as how quickly a program responds when you click a button, how many problems you experience with a program or a device, and how quickly information is sent or received over a network connection.
•Program use, such as the features that you use the most often, how often you use the Help and Support Center, and how many folders you typically create on your desktop.
This information is sent to Microsoft when you are connected to the Internet. CEIP reports do not contain any contact information about you (such as your name, address, or phone number). Although the IP address through which you access the Internet is sent to Microsoft with each CEIP report, Microsoft does not use it. CEIP generates a globally unique identifier (GUID) that is stored on your computer to uniquely identify it. The GUID is a randomly generated number; it does not contain any personal information and is not used to identify you. CEIP uses the GUID to distinguish how widespread the feedback we receive is and how to prioritize it. For example, the GUID allows Microsoft to distinguish between one customer experiencing a problem one hundred times and other customers experiencing the same problem once. The GUID is stored on your computer and sent with every CEIP report.
Microsoft uses CEIP information to improve our software. We may share CEIP information with partners, but the information can not be used to identify you. No CEIP information is used or shared for advertising purposes.
Information that is collected by or sent to Microsoft may be stored and processed in the United States or any other country in which Microsoft or its affiliates, subsidiaries, or agents maintain facilities. Microsoft may disclose this information if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to: (a) conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on Microsoft or the site; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of Microsoft and its family of Web sites, or (c) act in urgent circumstances to protect the personal safety of Microsoft employees, users of Microsoft software or services, or members of the public. Microsoft occasionally hires other companies to provide limited services on its behalf, such as providing customer support, processing transactions, or performing statistical analysis of reports. Microsoft will provide those companies only the information they need to deliver the service. They are required to maintain the confidentiality of this information and are prohibited from using it for any other purpose.
Security
Microsoft is committed to help protect the security of the information we collect. CEIP uses a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect reports from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure.
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