Chat app biz Signal is unhappy with the current version of Microsoft Recall and has invoked some Digital Rights Management (DRM) functionality in Windows to stop the tool from snapshotting private conversations.
Recall, which is not enabled by default, lacks granularity in how it captures its screenshots. While it will ignore incognito-mode browser windows, everything else is fair game. Signal prides itself on chat privacy and sees automatic screenshot capture of message windows as unacceptable.
In the absence of settings that developers can use to curb Microsoft’s eye on the desktop, Signal has turned to DRM. Setting a DRM flag on an application window means Recall (and any other screenshotter) will ignore it.
Signal explained: “Apps like Signal have essentially no control over what content Recall is able to capture, and implementing ‘DRM’ that works for you (not against you) is the best choice that we had. It’s like a scene in a movie where the villain has switched sides, and you can’t screenshot this one by default either.”
The new “Screen security” setting is on by default in Signal Desktop on Windows 11. Turning it off prompts a warning and requires user confirmation to continue.
It is a blunt tool, but difficult to avoid. As Signal observed, there are legitimate reasons for wanting a screenshot. For example, accessibility software like screen readers or magnification tools may not function correctly otherwise. It also only applies to the local device.
Recall made a disastrous debut a year ago at Microsoft’s 2024 Build event. Designed to capture snapshots to allow users to step back to whatever they might have been working on, it seemed a good idea, but the implementation resembled a prototype that somehow made it out into the wider world.
Cybersecurity experts and privacy activists tore Recall to shreds, and Microsoft was forced to go away and think about what it had done rework the tool.
In April 2025, Recall turned up in the Windows Insider Release Preview channel following a tentative preview of a reworked version at the end of 2024. The feature is opt-in and still carries the “Preview” label at the time of writing. According to Microsoft: “You are always in control of what apps and websites get saved in snapshots.”
Signal, however, has a drier take on Recall. “‘Take a screenshot every few seconds’ legitimately sounds like a suggestion from a low-parameter LLM that was given a prompt like ‘How do I add an arbitrary AI feature to my operating system as quickly as possible in order to make investors happy?'” ®