Stop Microsoft Collecting Data with Portmaster

Stop Microsoft Collecting Data with Portmaster
Portmaster is a free and open-source application firewall that does the heavy lifting for you. Restore privacy and take back control over all your computer's network activity.
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#windows11 #windows10 #techtips

[@chillpill7348]

Yes, pls make in depth video on this. Looks good utility..

[@davidthescottishvegan]

I haven't used port master but have used O&O Windows 10 Shut Up (also works on windows 11). Unfortunately if it wasn't Microsoft collecting your data it would be Google if you use Chrome, Google Drive etc so most of the Big Tech companies are guilty of it.

[@J-Ernie]

Portmaster is a nice tool, been using it for many months now.

[@dimass.1206]

The main issue of that kind of tweaks is that u dont know weather or not they are doing something else, besides blocking data collection. It's highly like they collect data to it's own servers )

[@laur6405]

The only way to stop the data collection and don't have the usual Windows bloatware is to use the Enterprise edition. It's as clean as XP and 7 used to be but you have to find your own way to activate it because Microsoft does not sell it to regular consumers

[@DevilbyMoonlight]

I used to think that a KMS would be required but I got a laptop that had the enterprise edition installed, and installing from scratch installs the enterprise version, so it must have an enterprise SLIC key on it.

[@laur6405]

@@DevilbyMoonlight You don't really have to install KMS anymore. Now you can activate it via powershell without installing any sort of dubious software and stuff like that

[@JohnSmith-mf3dh]

ahoy mate, I converted my 11 into enterprise. best decision ever... I use Simplewall to help me with the rest of the tracking.

[@leondevries478]

@@JohnSmith-mf3dh how can you convert 11 into enterprise, is that difficult to do ? best to you from the Netherlands

[@stop_tryharding]

Education edition allows you to turn off telemetry just like enterprise (presumably due to the expected ages of the users) and is otherwise identical to Win 11 Pro in terms of supporting stuff like Xbox Game Pass, WMR (for now), etc.

[@seeratlasdtyria4584]

Portmaster also works with Linux:)

[@Britec09]

yes

[@Hawk_112]

@@xCDF-pt8kj use brave it block all youtube ads and it also supports linux

[@bkThund3r]

Use Brave or a firefox addon.

[@Chris.Wiley.]

This is a pretty in-depth tool. I use Simplewall on my Win11 PC which gives you control over which apps are allowed internet access. So I basically setup a rule that allows all traffic on my LAN but blocks everything else. Then as you use your PC, you'll be prompted every time something wants to go outside of your LAN to give you the opportunity to allow it. Once it's allowed, you won't be prompted again. Over time this works great but it's a lot of work on the front end. The tricky part is when you're prompted for a hundred different Microsoft services that are trying to get out. I err on the side of blocking them until I discover something isn't working but then you have to go back and figure out which one needs to be unblocked.

[@abellius66]

I use Comodo firewall (uninstalled all the other bloat that comes with it) and it is very interesting how much Windows call out in Win 10 & 11 compared to Win 7!

[@punishthemeatpocket]

I use Windows Firewall Control and do the same thing. Block all access both inbound and outbound. Only allow essential network protocols and programs necessary for internet access. Bonus: you'll never get updates unless you allow them!

[@paulregner5335]

Thank you for this! 👍

[@dennisvaughn540]

Thanks for the new information!

[@paulfrayne6519]

Would definitely like to see an indepth review of Portmaster please

[@kooldad1]

Keep them coming Brian! A video showing how to see what is being sent from various APPS and how to block them would be good. Example - should my mouse app need to communicate with the internet?

[@billyguthrie3176]

Microsoft will just start blocking that too just like they are trying to do third party apps no doubt.

[@jrapplefan2231]

Yes, I want to know more about it. In tbe meantime, I do not connect automaticly on the internet on my Pc. Only when it is needed. Wireshark is helpful to see the garbage that Msft collect at each second on our PC.

[@dogday92]

yes, an in depth video or tutorial would be very helpful, thank you...

[@GeordiLaForgery]

If I ever install w11 I'd need something like this thanks B.

[@Cyba_IT]

Nice one Brian, cheers. How does Portmaster compare to Glasswire?

[@DonzLockz]

Awesome, just what I was looking for. I'd like a more in-depth video, please.🙏🙏🙏🤠🇦🇺

[@SalMightyOne]

This is only for the computer where you install it on but to do it on your whole local network you can install Adguard on your router or get a Raspberry Pi and install Pi-Hole and Adguard and make it your DNS server to block it. OpenWRT, Asus MerlinWRT, Tomatoe, OPNSense, PFSense, and many other router software ports or firewalls can be used to block connects and ads network wide.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

it still won't control your internet access on a program-specific level. So neither of product is perfect, they just have their own tasks

[@fuffuf5759]

In depth on Portmaster please.

[@fbifido2]

Please do a full deep dive for this application. - can it use block-list from crowdsec ?

:]]] Thx., for feedback Br !! Have a good one!!!

[@Britec09]

You too!

[@646464mario]

The only way to truly stop data collection from M$ is to ditch Windows entirely and install Linux. Nice to see these solutions to suppress it though.

[@harriehausenman8623]

This is the way.

[@kevinsteinman8967]

I tried Portmaster awhile ago and liked it to a certain extent but the piss poor documentation really was a downfall as they thought you're and IT firewall specialist when it comes to firewalls. Otherwise it's a good program if you can get to understand it and they need to really work on the documentation as one small change in one area can affect lots of other stuff that does not need changed. This was well over a year ago and perhaps they did something about the documentation for the program so perhaps I'll give it another look into. I'm glad Brian made this video on this so people have options and yes windows data collection needs locked down.

[@johngoard8272]

Hmm Brian well mate I ma just curious as to how this software might conflict with the tracking blockers and malware software's that I have on my machine already. For example I use the Brave browser which already blocks trackers and the ESET I have for malware.

[@betenu1]

If you just want to stop Microsoft data collection you can do that using the registry editor to create a new value under data collection to block it. I'm sure some one has made a video on how to do it.

[@IndianaJames415]

When will we see a data collection blocker for Google?

[@ScottGrammer]

M$ will block Portmaster the way they've already blocked so many programs intended to reverse their antisocial software engineering.

[@GeordiLaForgery]

Yeah some future patch will probably do that

[@MasicoreLord]

Yeah some future windows update likely will claim it's incompatible, so at least during updates you may have to remove it.

[@tahaaminmazumder8869]

In some countries such as India, we can't run it even on Linux distros😢

[@Raylightsen]

@@tahaaminmazumder8869 Why?

[@thesullivanstreetproject]

@@tahaaminmazumder8869is it banned or something? And if so, why?

[@robertfitzgerald3432]

Been using it for both Win 10 and 11 for a few months now. It is quite powerful.. right now on win 11, 300 connections are blocked, most automatically !! I open Port Master, view then MINIMIZE after rebooting/booting as I'm not sure it auto-starts during the booting process.

[@ImPureBlood]

Looks great that, what i would like to know from anyone that uses it, after setting up, does your pc run faster/smoother? For a long time, i have suspected that trackers and stuff, are slowing our pcs down and even causing crashes (100% disk followed by freeze) and other probs.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

it doesn't change computer performance in any noticeable way, just like it should be. Lightweight and powerful tool. If you mean its impact on windows telemetry software, it might be very individual. I uninstalled some OEM "features" from windows, stopped services that I don't need, and turned off telemetry as much as I could, so I cannot say my windows was slow before, or become faster after installing Portmaster. It's just better control over traffic, blocked fb/meta, blocked some malware sites, and got secure DNS. May be forgot some other useful tools )

[@Sqashlmo]

I know you're very much against using CCleaner - what program do you recommend for maintaining my PC drivers updated?

[@WafflePanB]

Thanks for the video! Even if I switched to linux already, some are unfortunatly unable to move.

[@smartxmusculado]

I started using this tool a couple of weeks ago and its I like that the user interface is extremely intuitive and how it presents everything. I turned off Windows' built-in firewall because I replaced it with Portmaster. It's many times better and I have an enjoyable experience whilst using it! Not a single bad thing I can say about it. Very informative video for those who didn't know about this handy tool, but some may likely found out about it themselves (like I did). I even stopped Microsoft's telemetry (I also completely turned it off with OO Shut-Up and WPD, as well Chris Titus' Tool) by enabling the Windows Spy Blocker filter. But one thing to ask: will this override the filter preference applied to my browser (I use Brave)?

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

it won't overwrite your block list preference most likely. It might be some conflict if you have enabled proxy/vpn/DNS in your browser settings. So upon installation Portmaster it's better to check that all your browsers (and possibly other applications) use system settings for DNS/proxy/vpn

[@smartxmusculado]

@@user-od4gs3iu4t You meant to say override (but overwrite would work as well) I never use a proxy or any of that sort. I have Quad9 DNS enabled because I want to protect my privacy. To be honest, I don't have any other applications that use default DNS or any of that sort (most likely that they don't provide options of that sort).

[@smartxmusculado]

@@user-od4gs3iu4t I don't use a proxy or VPN. My browser does use system settings for DNS/proxy/VPN. With regards to DNS in Portmaster, I changed it to use Quad9's. I don't have any other applications that use system DNS because no option of that sort is provided. Like, for example: should I allow my browser to use Quad9's DNS or should I let my firewall do it? I don't want to sound stupid or anything!

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

@@smartxmusculado no problem. 1. You can configure settings in router. It's the best way, but it's not always available. 2. If you don't have a router, cannot configure it, or just simply don't want to do it, leave all configuration to portmaster, but make sure it's always running. Then the best way would be to put your quad9 dns in Portmaster settings, and make settings in browser and other applications to "system default". In most cases it simply means: don't touch network settings in any other program. Hope this helps

[@smartxmusculado]

@@user-od4gs3iu4t I do have a router and for my browser, I left it to the default DNS setting. I do appreciate the help and instructions provided! I do keep Portmaster running in the background and I made sure it automatically starts up with Windows (which already does).

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

using it both on Win and Linux platforms, it's great for desktop and might be good even for server

[@drmarkintexas-400]

🙏🤗💙😎🏆 Thank you for sharing this

[@Britec09]

You are so welcome

[@eradication.]

I found Portmaster from some sponsored videos and nowadays I don't go a windows install without it.

[@darbomusic]

I have a question Bri, do I need Cloudflare on windows if I'm using Portmaster?

[@brycestewart3181]

Does this program turn off windows 11 built in firewall?? I assume so.. Thx for sharing

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

looks like no, but you can check and configure it in your windows security center

[@Verbalaesthet]

Install Linux - like Linux Mint for example. It's far superior to any Windows except for the downside that many games are not instantly compatible. Big titles yes like CS2 or Resident Evil but smaller indie titles usually ignore compatibility with Linux. But other than that it is better in any way.

[@rogerbowen5753]

I can't stop fiddling with stuff like that, I know I'd break something so I don't think I'll give that a whirl.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

you certainly don't have to install every good or useful utility that you hear about, but firewall is an essential tool for any system, and it's worth to take a closer look at it

[@rogerbowen5753]

@@user-od4gs3iu4t The Windows one will do me for now.

[@lowdrewl]

What about blocking it at the router i.e pfsense? Maybe something already exists?

[@paulfrayne6519]

Portmaster is a good alternative to PeerPlock which has been very useful at times.

[@robert8]

Yes please. I am so fed up of Microsoft but I am helpless and may be some others to. But I had some kind of knowledge, I would have created a software and written code so powerful that no Microsoft or any geek would have been able to break it and I would have distributed it freely for those like to keep their privacy.

[@GehMemories]

can this be use on windows 10?

[@J-Ernie]

Yes

[@rdsii64]

I would love to see a review of the paid version to see if it's worth paying for.

[@tahaaminmazumder8869]

It's one of the best free firewall too, in a way!

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

yeee, it's FOSS!

[@trp225]

8:28 yes please

[@DollyPocket]

Bri if this is just a firewall then what is the absolute best one that stops 100% of unwanted outbound data

[@Chris.Wiley.]

Search for Simplewall.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

you have to go with linux, unix, freebsd or something like this if you are so concerned about control of your data

[@billyguthrie3176]

Dies portmaster disable windows firewall or does it just run along side it?

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

you can check it in your windows security center

[@jkbobful]

It works along side it

[@billyguthrie3176]

Thanks@@jkbobful

[@Nick41622]

It is to a point. For a start never sign in with a Microsoft account.

[@artisanbusiness1314]

Can we do this with PFSense? this way we can do a system block.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

have you checked the sys requirements for pfSense? it's for free BSD, and it's main purpose to be installed on router, for home or for server deployment. It's not a software firewall installed on your OS, it's rather like an OS itself, with main functionality to serve as a firewall

[@Knards]

It is good to know who accesses your computer. People concentrate on MS, but the number of other 3rd party corporations is far bigger. I use PeerGuardian at times, and that is pretty effective

[@caramba10]

Does this add anything that Pi-hole would miss?

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

Pi hole is not a firewall. there is a comparison table between pi hole and portmaster on portmaster web site

[@SilvioManfredDante]

Better or worse than Glasswire?

[@goemboeck]

I assume Portmaster gives a notification when a new software/OS tries to call home?

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

configurable in options

[@Bob-The-Guy]

Ok, MS is collecting data on us....but the bigger question is it just being used internally or are they selling this data to third party data brokers as well?

[@MemoGrafix]

Data Broker$$$

[@clone1918]

Please give a more indepth video :D

[@user-yn8mz5bf9y]

trying this program

[@harriehausenman8623]

hold on. How do we know portmaster isn't malicious? And what's the performance impact? CPU usage & traffic?

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

it's FOSS. So you can choose at least one of the list: trust its developer, trust community, check by yourself. Now let me ask you - how can you know Win is not malicious?

[@debeeriz]

can portmaster block youtube ads

[@anomamos9095]

One thing you need to be wary of is blocking something that crashes the system out of spite because it senses an Internet connection but can’t connect. I’ve come across this a couple of times but I forget the specific details of the services that caused it . Svchosts for example could be one depending on the version. It will especially happen when you have a Trojan.

[@user-lw2hu6gx1f]

Portmaster is 500MB installed, God knows what kinda data is it collecting and where dose is send. Reminds me how blackberry phone was "safe" back in 2010 ...

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

uhu ) FOSS vs proprietary closed source, what a suitable comparison )

[@Nele_BiH]

I loaded windows and it had list like his on video then i checked on my linux desktop i had only 4 and they were firefox and kde system services,thats insane diffrence

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

indeed the difference is insane. I have the same Portmaster on Win11 and Ubuntu. Ubuntu has 4 apps connected to internet

[@Derpcat]

Portmaster is absolutely mad but sometimes very finicky to get right, esp if you have lots of specific apps

[@tahaaminmazumder8869]

In my country India, now this one of the finest free port-management programs doesn't work, at least my ISP Airtel doesn't allow it. This all started happening a few months ago when the govt. banned a hell lotta stuff, including torrenting. Now I can't downkoad Kali Everything and Arch latest version too😢

[@pauledo5026]

Glasswire does the same thing

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

proprietary

[@hiru92]

actually I blocked the internet once when I first installed it, then I rebooted internet come back and I saw its setting to block unblock incoming connection 😅

[@SirHackaL0t.]

How long until msft bans this program?

[@Corteum]

Portmaster itself probably collects all the data,

[@Physis_88]

You can always check their Privacy Policy and draw conclusions from it.

[@bkThund3r]

Linux fanboy here. 1. Use Linux for day to day use. 2. Install Windows X Lite for windows gaming or apps that don't have a Linux counterpart. 3. Live in freedom.

[@motor-head]

I stopped Windows from harvesting data by installing Linux.

[@harriehausenman8623]

sure shot!

[@thejusticeization]

why does microsoft collect data in the first place?

[@jonathanmaybury5698]

Yeah, it'll be alright until Microsoft decides in the next update to disallow it, but you won't know that until it doesn't boot up again and you'll probably have to reload the OS back in.

[@Porkypies6m]

windows 7 has none of that stuff on it

[@platterjockey]

Sorry, I read the title a bit differently. 🤣

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

por*master?

[@platterjockey]

@@user-od4gs3iu4t 😇

[@DimpieDeBruyn]

People better make restore points ... I see many a PC turned to brick with this one t😝

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

restore points proved so many times useless, when you need to use it for its purpose, not just for checkpoint that you created them ) only system backup, with multiple copies, without direct access (overwrite protected, password protected) and with some history to browse if you catch some real bug or encrypt malware

[@MikeHunt-pu5cm]

300 MB seems a lot for a firewall to be honest.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

for a simple firewall might be a lot, if you gonna run it on a potato pc. For a firewall with features and GUI it doesn't seem a lot, it's OK. It doesn't take a lot of RAM either

[@MikeHunt-pu5cm]

@@user-od4gs3iu4t I've done a bit of programming. You don't need 300 MB to do what that program does. It's a firewall. That seems ridiculous. It's got othing to do with potato PC.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

@@MikeHunt-pu5cm you should really check the list of function of this utility. It's long. The short list: it's a VPN if you pay for subscription, it's a block list, it's a secure DNS, it has GUI to show a lot of functions and status, it's a configurable firewall. Can you really be sure this is too little to get 300 MB installer? This program is not for a potato PC, potato PC would use some lightweight linux and ufw or something similar. And it's FOSS, so if you have any complaints you can go, check and report them back, or publish it anywhere else with your arguments

[@mgd9151]

Computer users want to snoop while telling the computer companies to not snoop. Users are their own worst problem because they are just like the tyrants they wish to be freed from.

[@Dynamit008]

LoL why use stuff like this instead of switch DNS server on network level to one that block stuff like telemetry DNS from M$ or do like me run custom DNS server and have total control.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

for a single home PC?

[@-JA-]

👍🙂

[@joejane9977]

microsoft the OS that is spyware

[@harriehausenman8623]

and adware!

[@thelimatheou]

Easiest way to do it is switching to Linux 😜

[@mehere8-32]

Yes it is, just install something else. It really is that simple,

[@poseidon3032]

If Microsoft forces the issue, you can use a hardware appliance on your network. There's always a way Microsoft. Knock it off!

[@rdsii64]

A hardware appliance is what I would love to add to my homelab rack.

[@MrBoboka12]

Linux. Games run fine, web is web.

[@DimpieDeBruyn]

GTFO ... that YT channel is that way 🔄

[@prezlamen]

I cannot see your content everything is tiny,try to change DPI with zoom level 150% and use bigger fonts

[@Raylightsen]

The first step is to not use win 11.

[@franciscohorna5542]

nice no need to download here using norton smart firewall here part of my norton 360 delux package

[@Drewtheelder]

You've been ripped off.

[@franciscohorna5542]

@@Drewtheelder nope not ripped off been suing sinc 2010

[@Drewtheelder]

Good for you, well done.@@franciscohorna5542

[@Earth-Angel-639]

I'm absolutely sure bill gates Will pay for collecting data EA639

[@mitchelldarnell5334]

I don't like anyone to extract any information with out my knowledge.. It is only about money and my private system...

[@tossen7425]

Portmaster is a bad program! After I installed the program, I lost internet connection! Dont use Portmaster! Use spybot anti-beacon instead!

[@ShadowzGSD]

only because you got the settings wrong, if you set it up right you keep the internet.

[@user-od4gs3iu4t]

you didn't lose it, rather blocked it ) it may happen if you pressed the wrong button )

[@pfikurum]

Who cares? You set your settings wrong!

[@Laughing_Individual]

You blocked your own connection. Stupid.