Why Four Windows Users Switched to Linux: Privacy, Recall and the Limits of Changing Your OS

What the four switchers say​

TechRadar interviewed four people. They are a Queensland clinical psychologist, an Atlanta graphic artist, a North Carolina bio-behavioural scientist and a Hungarian technical engineer. Their reasons differ, and so does their technical skill.

• Christopher Smith (bio-behavioural scientist) says he had no programming background. After 25 years on Microsoft products, he grew frustrated at being pushed toward software and services he hadn't asked for. He tried Linux from a bootable USB stick, then set up dual boot. He picked Linux Mint with the Cinnamon desktop because its point-and-click layout felt familiar. He has since bought a Linux laptop and is building a home server.
• Imre Lóránt Dévai (engineer, Budapest) points to a Logitech mouse. On Windows he says managing buttons and firmware needed vendor software, an account and a background app. On Linux he wrote small scripts for the functions he needed, such as button mapping and battery checks.
• Aaron Frost (psychologist, Brisbane) cited patient confidentiality and the Recall controversy. He wiped an old Windows machine and went from Ubuntu to Fedora with GNOME before settling.
• Dan Rodda (graphic artist, Atlanta) has replaced much of his cloud storage, search and productivity software with open-source or privacy-focused tools. He also runs GrapheneOS on a Google Pixel.

These are personal accounts. They show why some people leave, but they don't measure how many do.

The Windows 10 backdrop​

TechRadar says the end of free Windows 10 support, followed by Microsoft's promotion of Windows 11 and data-collection practices, sparked dissatisfaction. The lifecycle milestone is real. Microsoft's support page says Windows 10 reached end of support on October 14, 2025. After that date, technical assistance, feature updates and security updates are no longer provided. Windows 10 PCs still function, but Microsoft warns they face greater risk from viruses and malware.

Microsoft also says the consumer Extended Security Updates program can protect Windows 10 devices until October 12, 2027. For anyone whose PC can't run Windows 11, the realistic options are ESU, a new PC, or another OS.

There is some independent evidence of interest in Linux around that date. TechRepublic reported that Zorin OS 18, released the day Windows 10 lost support, crossed 2 million downloads in under three months. It added that Zorin Group said more than three-quarters of those downloads came from Windows users. Downloads are not installs, and they don't show who stayed. They do suggest the curiosity goes beyond four interviewees.

Recall: what Microsoft's documentation says​

Frost's concern follows the 2024 Recall controversy, and his reasoning deserves a fair hearing. The current documentation changes the picture, though.

Microsoft's support page describes Recall as an AI-powered feature that periodically captured screenshots in TechRadar's wording. Microsoft frames it differently. Recall is exclusive to Copilot+ PCs, and users must opt in to save snapshots. If they don't, Microsoft says it stays off and no snapshots are saved. Users can pause saving, filter apps and websites, and delete snapshots. Microsoft says processing and storage are local, and that snapshots are not shared with Microsoft or third parties. Windows Hello authentication is required to open Recall.

Microsoft's own caveats matter too:

• Sensitive-information filtering is on by default, but it only reduces what gets stored.
• Website filtering applies only to the foreground tab in supported browsers. Parts of filtered sites, such as embedded content or browser history, can still appear in snapshots.
• Filtering does not stop websites, ISPs or organizations from knowing a site was visited.
• Recall is still labelled a preview feature.

For workplaces, Microsoft Learn says Recall is disabled and removed by default on managed devices. IT admins can allow it, but they can't turn on snapshot saving for users. For unmanaged devices, it notes there are currently no built-in Conditional Access policies in Intune or Entra for Recall.

This doesn't make Frost wrong to be wary. A clinician can reasonably decide that an always-available screen-history feature isn't worth the risk. But his statement that he couldn't see a compliant way to use Windows is his own judgment. The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner classes health information as sensitive under the Australian Privacy Principles. Those principles set conditions on collection, use and disclosure. The OAIC page reviewed doesn't ban any specific operating system. Whether a given practice is compliant depends on its devices, settings and workflows, and a privacy professional can assess that.

Linux is not automatic privacy​

The story's strongest practical advice is to experiment before committing. Its weakest implication is that changing your OS takes back your whole digital footprint. The interviewees themselves describe a wider effort:

• Smith swapped Edge and Chrome for Brave and Vivaldi.
• Rodda moved cloud storage, search and productivity tools.
• Lóránt Dévai runs a home lab with Pi-hole for DNS filtering, self-hosted Bitwarden and self-hosted analytics.

Those are separate decisions, and each has a cost. Self-hosting means you maintain the patches, backups and security. That is a hobbyist's project, not a first step. Accounts, browsers, phones and cloud services all keep tracking you whatever runs on your desktop.

Linux Mint's own site states a privacy position: "We don't collect data, we don't work against you." That is the project's claim, not an audit. It also doesn't cover the apps and websites you use on top of it.

AI helpers: useful, with guardrails​

Several interviewees credit large language models with getting them through the learning curve. Frost said he doubts he'd have got through the first week without them. The same people attach cautions:

• Lóránt Dévai advises checking what an AI proposes before it changes or deletes important data.
• Rodda says he has to double-check answers and finds them sometimes subtly wrong.
• Lóránt Dévai says cloud AI may be fine on a fresh system with no personal files. Once private photos or documents are present, he recommends a privacy-focused or local model.

That last point is the irony of the story. Someone leaving Big Tech for privacy may paste logs and configuration into a cloud chatbot run by a big tech company. A sensible rule is to share only what you must, and to read every command before you run it.

A practical path for Windows users who are curious​

This follows the interviewees' advice and Linux Mint's own description of its live USB option.

1. Inventory what you use. Rodda suggests listing what you actually use, then researching replacements. Check peripherals and any app you can't live without.
2. Back up first. Copy your important files somewhere separate before you touch anything.
3. Try a live USB. Mint says it can run from a live USB stick so you can check that things work without installing. Writing the image to a USB drive erases that drive, so use a spare one.
4. Test your hardware. Check Wi-Fi, display, sound, printers and any special peripherals in the live session.
5. Consider dual boot with care. Mint says you can keep both systems and choose at startup. Partition changes carry risk, so follow current instructions for your distro and device.
6. Pick a distro that matches your comfort level. Mint's current release is 22.3 "Zena". Mint's Cinnamon edition is the one Smith chose. Others in the story moved between Ubuntu and Fedora before settling.
7. Make privacy choices service by service. Moving your browser, search, storage and passwords is a separate project from the OS.

One caveat: the Mint community tutorial on USB creation is old and version-specific, so don't use it as a current guide.

The takeaway​

This is a human-interest feature, not a market study. It captures real motives: control over one's own machine, professional caution and frustration with bundled software. It doesn't show a mass migration.

Windows users who stay can limit their exposure through settings. They can leave Recall opted out, or remove it, and review privacy settings. Those who leave get different defaults and more responsibility. Neither choice settles privacy on its own. That depends on what you run, where your data goes and how much upkeep you'll take on.