Review Settings > Privacy & security > Search permissions for SafeSearch, cloud content search, and device search history. Then check Settings > Privacy & security > Searching Windows to see which files and locations Windows indexes. Bing searches saved to your Microsoft account are managed separately from Windows’ device search history.
Start with Search permissions
Open Settings > Privacy & security > Search permissions. This page brings together the main controls for web-result filtering, cloud-connected results, and search history saved on the device. The exact options shown can depend on your Windows version and which accounts are connected.
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SafeSearch controls web results and previews
Under SafeSearch, Windows Search uses Bing technology to assess whether web results contain sensitive content before showing previews. If content is deemed adult, Windows can replace its preview with a “See web results” button. This setting affects web results and previews; it does not control which local files Windows indexes.
Strict is shared with Bing and overrides the SafeSearch setting on Bing.com. With Moderate or Off, Windows follows the SafeSearch preference set on Bing.com. See Microsoft’s Windows Search and privacy guidance for details.
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Choose whether Search uses cloud content
Windows Search can combine results from your device with content associated with a personal Microsoft account or a work or school account. Personal-account results may include OneDrive, Outlook, and other Microsoft services. Work or school results may include OneDrive for Business, Outlook, SharePoint, and other Microsoft Search services.
Review the account categories and cloud content search options on the Search permissions page. To inspect accounts connected to Windows, go to Settings > Accounts > Email & accounts. Microsoft also says you can review accounts from the taskbar Search panel’s Options menu. On a shared or managed PC, consider whether you want those account-based results appearing in taskbar searches. Disconnecting an account from Windows is not the same as deleting its data from the associated Microsoft service.
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Clear device search history
Microsoft says Windows Search saves search history locally on your device to help you find things faster. To clear that local record, select History > Clear device search history on the Search permissions page. This is a device-level control, not a command to erase search history saved to a Microsoft account.
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Bing searches made while you are signed in to a Microsoft account can appear in that account’s privacy dashboard. Searches made while you are not signed in are not displayed there, according to Microsoft. To review or clear account-associated Bing history, use the Microsoft privacy dashboard or Bing Search History.
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| Record | Where to review or clear it | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Windows device search history | Settings > Privacy & security > Search permissions > History | Search history saved locally by Windows on that device. |
| Bing history associated with a Microsoft account | Microsoft privacy dashboard or Bing Search History | Bing searches made while signed in to the account. |
Clearing one record does not clear the other.
Check which files Windows indexes
For local-file privacy, open Settings > Privacy & security > Searching Windows. Review Find my files, the indexed locations, and the indexing options. Microsoft documents Classic and Enhanced modes; Classic includes a default set of locations, while Enhanced covers a broader scope. The available choices and defaults can vary by Windows version and device.
Where advanced indexing options are available, Windows can index file properties only or properties and file contents. Properties-only indexing can make content inside files less likely to appear in searches, while indexing contents can make those files easier to find. Choose the scope that fits how you use the PC, and review selected locations rather than assuming the mode’s name tells the whole story. See Microsoft’s guidance on configuring Windows Search.
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What semantic indexing means for privacy
On supported Copilot+ PCs and supported file types, semantic indexing can help Windows find content by meaning, not only by exact words. Microsoft says semantic-indexing data is stored locally on the PC—or locally to Cloud PC storage on supported Windows 365 devices—is not stored by Microsoft, and is not used to train AI models. Microsoft also cautions that apps installed on the PC may be able to read index data. Local storage therefore does not mean the index is inaccessible to every local app. These statements apply to the described semantic-indexing feature, not automatically to every Windows 11 PC or every kind of Windows Search data.
Keep Activity history separate
Settings > Privacy & security > Activity history controls a different category from Search permissions and Bing account history. Microsoft says Windows 11 Activity history is stored locally. The option to send Activity history to Microsoft was deprecated for Windows 11 versions 22H2 and 23H2 by the January 23, 2024 update. Reviewing or clearing Activity history does not replace reviewing Search permissions, device search history, or Bing history. See Microsoft’s Activity history and privacy guidance.
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