Microsoft has started to
show adverts on the Lock
Screen in Windows 10 using
its controversial ‘Spotlight’
feature.
Normally the Lock Screen
displays landscape photos,
which change every time you
lock and unlock your PC. But
some users have reported that
these have been replaced by
adverts for the computer game
Rise of the Tomb Raider (see
screenshot right).
Clicking the advert takes
you to the Windows Store,
where you can buy the game
It’s the latest attempt by
Microsoft to make money
by placing adverts within
Windows 10. There are likely
to be many more adverts to
follow, as Microsoft aims to
recoup some of the revenue it
lost by making the operating
system a free download.
However, you can make
sure no adverts appear –
only photos - by changing
Microsoft’s default setting for
the Lock Screen.
Click Start, Settings,
Personalization, then select
‘Lock Screen’. Next, under
Background, change ‘Windows
spotlight’ to Picture or
Slideshow, depending on how
you want the photos to appear.
Disable personal info
on the Lock Screen
By default the Spotlight feature
also shows status alerts on the
Lock Screen for some Windows
10 apps – including Calendar,
Mail and Messages. These may
contain personal info you’d
rather keep hidden. To disable
this, switch off the setting
‘Get fun facts, tips, tricks and
more on your lock screen’
Next, look at the
icons displayed beneath
‘Choose an app to show
detailed status’ and ‘Choose
apps to show quick status’.
Click the icons and select
None to turn each app off, or
select the apps you want
instead from the list.
Adverts first appeared in
Windows 10 last September as
‘suggested’ apps in the Start
menu. As with the Lock
Screen ads, Microsoft tailors
these to your tastes by
tracking what you do on your
PC, unless you turn off a
particular setting.
Do this by clicking Start,
Settings, Personalization,
then Start and switch off
‘Occasionally show
suggestions in Start’.
The Windows Store’s ‘Live’
tile also shows adverts in the
Start menu. To prevent this,
open the Windows Store app,
click your account, choose
Settings, then switch off
‘Show products on tile’.
Microsoft isn’t the first
company to show adverts on
lock screens. The cheapest
version of Amazon’s Kindle
Fire tablet also shows adverts.
You have to pay more for a
device without adverts
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