Surface Duo is powered by the Google Android operating system. Google products and services are covered by the Google Privacy Policy.
Microsoft provides a core Surface Duo experience and apps. These Microsoft services and apps may provide information to Microsoft. When you choose to share your data with Microsoft, we want to make sure you have all the information you need to make the right choices about how and when we use that data.
Manage your Microsoft privacy settings
To view or change your privacy settings for the Microsoft apps on your device:
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Open the Settings app.
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Tap Microsoft to view or change Microsoft app diagnostic data settings.
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Tap Apps or Notifications, and then select the individual app to view or change privacy settings for it.
Manage your Google privacy settings
To view or change your privacy settings for the Google apps on your device:
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Open the Settings app, then tap Privacy.
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On the Privacy screen, tap Privacy dashboard to see which apps used permissions recently. For example, your camera.
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On the Privacy screen, tap Usage & diagnostics to view or change Google diagnostic data settings.
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In Settings, tap Apps or Notifications, and then select the individual app to view or change privacy settings for it.
Surface Duo diagnostic data
Surface Duo collects diagnostic data to solve problems and to keep the core Surface Duo experience up to date, secure, and operating properly. This data also helps us improve Surface Duo and related Microsoft products and services. The data does not include your user name, email address, or the content of your files. There are two levels of diagnostic data: Required diagnostic data and Optional diagnostic data.
Microsoft requests your permission to collect optional diagnostic data to help us improve Surface Duo and related Microsoft products and services. The data is transmitted to Microsoft and stored with one or more unique identifiers that can help us recognize an individual device and understand the device's service issues and use patterns.
The diagnostic data options provided during setup and in the Settings app are used to configure diagnostic data collection from the core Surface Duo experience, including apps such as Microsoft Launcher, Setup Wizard, and Your Phone Companion. The other Microsoft apps have their own diagnostic data options which are managed in the Settings app under the associated app name.
For additional information about data collection as it may relate to organizational devices, see the Products provided by your organization—notice to end users section of the Privacy Statement.
For more information about the Microsoft apps that ship with Surface Duo, see the Productivity and communications products and Search, Microsoft Edge, and artificial intelligence sections of the Privacy Statement.
Required diagnostic data includes information about your device, its settings and capabilities, and whether it is performing properly. Microsoft collects the following Required diagnostic data from the core Surface Duo experience:
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Device properties such as the manufacturer, processor type, and memory attributes.
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Device settings and configurations, such as networking and peripherals data.
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Basic error reporting, such as whether updates were successfully installed.
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Reliability data about the health of the apps and services.
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Operating system version, configuration details, and updates installed.
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Apps and drivers installed on the device.
Optional diagnostic data includes more detailed information about your device and its settings, capabilities, and health. Optional diagnostic data also includes data about the websites you browse, device activity (also sometimes referred to as usage), and enhanced error reporting that helps Microsoft to fix and improve products and services for all customers. When you choose to send Optional diagnostic data, Required diagnostic data will always be included. If you choose to share Optional diagnostic data, we collect the following additional information:
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Additional data about the device, connectivity, and configuration, beyond that collected under Required diagnostic data.
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Status and logging information about the health of system components beyond that collected about the update and diagnostics systems under Required diagnostic data.
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App activity, such as which programs are running on a device and for how long, and how quickly they respond to input.
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Browser activity in Microsoft Edge, including browsing history and search terms.
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Enhanced error reporting, including the memory state of the device when a system or app crash occurs (which may unintentionally contain user content, such as parts of a file you were using when the problem occurred).
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Specific data items collected by Surface Duo diagnostics are subject to change to give Microsoft flexibility to collect the data needed for the purposes described. For example, to ensure Microsoft can troubleshoot the latest performance issue impacting users or update a Surface Duo device, Microsoft may need to collect data items that were not collected previously.
Regardless of whether you choose to send Optional diagnostic data, your device will be just as secure and will operate normally.
