This analysis describes what Microsoft's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
This provision establishes Microsoft's acknowledgment of state-level privacy obligations and frames the privacy statement as operating within the parameters of existing state privacy legislation. The clause defines the scope of user rights as determined by state law rather than by the privacy statement alone, creating a jurisdictional framework for privacy requests and consumer protections.
The updated policy establishes additional grounds on which Microsoft may retain personal data. While the prior version tied retention to specific user expectations and available deletion controls, the revised language authorizes retention for 'operating our business, meeting our contractual and legal obligations, improving and developing our products and services, protecting the safety and security of our systems and customers, and resolving disputes.' This expands the stated purposes beyond transaction fulfillment and legal compliance. The updated policy directs users to product-specific documentation for retention details rather than providing explicit deletion procedures and timelines in the privacy statement itself.
View change record →The updated policy now grounds data retention in five broad business purposes: operating the business, meeting contractual and legal obligations, improving and developing products and services, protecting system and customer safety, and resolving disputes. Previously, the policy articulated specific criteria for determining retention periods, including customer expectations for retention until manual deletion, availability of automated deletion controls, and data sensitivity. The revised language removes these granular criteria and instead requires users to consult individual product documentation to understand when their specific data will be deleted. This shifts the burden of finding retention timelines from the main policy statement to separate product-specific documents.
View change record →The updated Privacy Statement removes previously stated language about additional rights available to European Economic Area users, narrowing the policy's explicit protections in that region. Simultaneously, the revised terms now explicitly authorize Microsoft to contact users via auto-dialer and prerecorded voice for marketing purposes, provided the user has consented to receive marketing communications to the phone number supplied. This establishes Microsoft's contractual permission to initiate automated marketing calls using artificial intelligence-generated voice technology where user consent to marketing contact has been given.
View change record →Users residing in the specified states operate under privacy rights established by state statute, which the terms recognize and commit to honor according to applicable law. The operative rights—access, correction, deletion, opt-out from sales and targeted advertising, and appeal mechanisms—are defined by state law rather than solely by Microsoft's contractual terms, and their availability depends on the user's state of residence.
How other platforms handle this
If you are located in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom, you have the right to access, correct, or erase your personal data; the right to restrict or object to our processing of your personal data; the right to data portability; and, where our processing is based on your...
For individuals in the United States, please also refer to our Notice For Individuals Residing In Certain US States below and the Consumer Health Data Policy.
If you are a California resident, you may have the right to: Know what personal information we collect, use, disclose, sell, or share. Correct inaccurate personal information. Delete your personal information. Opt out of the sale or sharing of your personal information. Limit the use and disclosure ...
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"Several U.S. states, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Oregon, Texas, and Virginia, provide their residents with specific privacy rights. These include the right to know what personal data is collected and how it is used, the right to access, correct, and delete personal data, the right to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal data and the processing of personal data for targeted advertising, and in some states, the right to appeal a decision made in response to a privacy request. Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights or these rights may operate differently.— Excerpt from Microsoft's Microsoft Privacy Statement (Legacy)
Ad personalization controls removed. Contact scanning added. Advertiser data partnerships quietly dropped. A timeline of every change.
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This provision establishes Microsoft's acknowledgment of state-level privacy obligations and frames the privacy statement as operating within the parameters of existing state privacy legislation. The clause defines the scope of user rights as determined by state law rather than by the privacy statement alone, creating a jurisdictional framework for privacy requests and consumer protections.
Users residing in the specified states operate under privacy rights established by state statute, which the terms recognize and commit to honor according to applicable law. The operative rights—access, correction, deletion, opt-out from sales and targeted advertising, and appeal mechanisms—are defined by state law rather than solely by Microsoft's contractual terms, and their availability depends on the user's state of …
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