Microsoft has started testing app-by-app privacy controls for classic desktop programs in Windows 11. Until now, Windows gave those programs one shared switch for camera, microphone and location, so allowing one app meant allowing all of them.
The change is in Beta build 26220.9836, released to Windows Insiders on 30 October. You will find a switch for every desktop app in Settings > Privacy & security, on the Camera, Microphone and Location screens.
According to Microsoft’s release notes, nothing is reset. Programs you had allowed stay allowed and those you had blocked stay blocked. An app that has never asked for a resource will prompt the first time it does. Enterprise policies keep working as before.
The practical gain is visibility. A video-call tool, a screen recorder and a game launcher no longer share a single yes or no, and you can see which program is asking for the microphone or your location. Microsoft says its aim is to make these permissions easier to understand across the many kinds of desktop apps people use, and it wants feedback through the Feedback Hub (Win + F) under Settings > Privacy Settings. It is also exploring more management options for enterprises.
Odd names and unsigned apps
The list won’t always match the app you launched: programs that lean on shared Windows parts or run inside a browser engine may show under another name. If Windows can’t check who published a program, it appears as Unsigned, and Microsoft’s advice is to say yes only to software you know.
Smaller changes in the build
- A new toggle under Settings > Accessibility > Magnifier decides whether Windows key + Plus starts Magnifier. It stays on by default.
- Narrator can read maths aloud in eight more languages, among them Polish, Russian, Greek and Vietnamese.
- File thumbnails in the Recommended section of File Explorer’s Home page are sharper.
- The security key PIN screen drops the “other user” icon.
Microsoft also fixed a bug that stopped some Insiders from personalising the mouse and reset wallpapers on reboot. The new solid spinners shown during boot, sign-in, restart, shutdown and update are being pulled back for now while a bug is fixed, and Microsoft expects to resume that rollout soon.
Under the hood this is still Windows 11 25H2, updated through an enablement package. Microsoft notes that features tested with Insiders may change or never ship, and has not given a date for the privacy controls to reach everyone.
