Users fear this Windows 11 service is spying on their PCs
Microsoft says it’s not what it seems.
- Claims that Windows 11’s Health and Optimized Experiences service spies on users sparked debate after a viral X post.
- The service monitors local performance, power, and heat issues, but Microsoft says data stays on the PC unless users file feedback.
- Microsoft Vice President Scott Hanselman said the service detects slow or sluggish behavior, not screen recordings or surveillance.
- The backlash reflects wider frustration with Windows 11 over updates, performance problems, and Microsoft’s push toward AI features.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
Claims that Microsoft is spying on Windows 11 PC users have prompted questions about what the Windows Health and Optimized Experiences service actually does.
“Microsoft added a new background service to your PC in Windows 11,” announced @Xilly, an account on X, focusing on PC optimization tips, FPS boosts, and gaming performance guides. This service is called Windows Health and Optimized Experiences.According to the post, which now has more than 118,000 views, this feature is used on desktop gaming PCs as a tracking tool and “does nothing for you except run in the background.” “It starts automatically every time you boot. It monitors your CPU, thermals, and battery, then sends data to Microsoft every 15 minutes,” said the post.
However, the feature is far less sinister than the post claims.
What is Windows Health and Optimized Experiences?
Windows Health and Optimized Experiences (whesvc) is a service that runs in the background and monitors local performance, power usage, and thermal conditions, capturing diagnostic traces when the system runs slowly.
Contrary to what is stated in the post, the information collected by the service doesn’t actually leave a user’s PC, unless they decide to file a report via the Feedback Hub.
Users can also disable whescv.
The service was first introduced in 2025.
Users react to spying allegations
The post sparked a discussion between users who didn’t see an issue with the feature, which has been running for a while now, and those who questioned whether they should disable it.
“Microsoft added this back in May 2025, why are you acting like this is new?” asked one X user.
“Some days I am not sure what sucks more, Microsoft or rage bait,” wrote another netizen.
While some users reported disabling the service, Microsoft Vice President Scott Hanselman intervened, stating that it was added to detect “slow or sluggish behavior."
In the comments section, Hanselman also answered some questions regarding the service to clear things up.
One user was curious about what metrics detect “sluggish performance.”
“Processes' hardware consumption tells nothing, while screen recording is performance-heavy,” wrote the user.
“Performance traces are not screen recording. They use Windows performance counters, amongst other things,” added Microsoft’s VP.
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Backlash against Windows 11
Such and similar posts about Windows 11 can be quite triggering for users, given the operating system's past issues.
It was previously reported that some Dell computers were blocked from receiving the Windows 11 July update because of severe system issues.
The update would cause Dell devices to shut down, increase heat, cause battery drain, and lead to poor performance.
Recently, it was reported that the company is also working on a faster Windows 11 context menu, ensuring it runs more smoothly and allowing users to personalize it.
However, users weren’t too impressed by the news, saying that such a feature should have been introduced long ago.
Discontent with Windows 11 has been growing for a while now, with users mostly opposed to Microsoft’s decision to make the new operating system more AI-centric.
This escalated to the point where the company decided to fix Windows 11 and make it less AI-dependent.
