We talk a lot about cybersecurity on this blog and with our customers, and that’s on purpose: the risk of a cyberattack is real for small businesses like yours, and we want to help keep you safe!
But what about good old-fashioned real-world safety?
The best cybersecurity policies known to humankind can’t protect you from physical threats that exist in real life (IRL) — people stealing credentials from that sticky note on your desk or peeping at sensitive documents on your screen at the local coffee shop.
If IRL privacy matters to your business, we have good news: an upcoming feature coming to Windows 11 will help. It’s called Onlooker Detection, and here’s what to know.
What Is Onlooker Detection?
Onlooker Detection is a new feature coming to Windows 11 that can sense when someone besides you might be lurking, trying to watch your screen. When Onlooker Detection “sees” someone who shouldn’t be there, it can be set to automatically dim your screen or even pop up a warning, alerting you to watch out for prying eyes.
How Does Onlooker Detection Work?
To create this new feature, Microsoft is combining several existing features and technologies, starting with something called Presence Sensing. On most modern laptops, Windows can already sense when you’re at your computer. Right now the main use for this is dimming your screen when you walk away and brightening it when you return. It’s also part of Windows Hello, Microsoft’s passwordless biometric authentication system.
It might seem like a small touch, but this feature makes using a PC easier and more secure — and it saves power, too.
Now it seems Microsoft asked the question: why stop there? If your PC can already detect when you walk up, couldn’t it detect when not-you is poking around?
That’s the premise behind Onlooker Detection.
Feature Limited to Certain Newer Devices
As is often the case, this new Windows feature won’t work with every single device that can run Windows. Your PC needs a presence sensor called Human Presence Detection, or HPD.
Don’t worry if you’ve never heard of it; this is a more obscure piece of tech that doesn’t get a lot of notice.
Most laptops with newer processes from Qualcomm, AMD, and Intel already have this sensor — and the vast majority of business laptops are running chips from those manufacturers.
So in other words: unless your PCs are getting near retirement age, you’re probably covered.
If you want to be sure, open the Settings app on the PC in question, then look under System: Power & Battery. If you don’t see anything about HPD or Windows Hello or sensing for wake-up, then you likely don’t have it. (Even still, you might want to check with your IT partner to make sure.)
Timeline Uncertain
Onlooker Detection has popped up in numerous preview builds of Windows 11, but it hasn’t made it into a full release quite yet. Microsoft hasn’t told us yet exactly when this feature will roll out, but all signs point to it coming in one of the next OS updates.
A Welcome Focus on IRL Security
So why devote a whole blog post to this? Well, we think this is a sensible change for Microsoft to make — and a smart adjustment for the way people work today. More people than ever are logging on in all sorts of places. Even if you don’t regularly work remotely, chances are you’ve opened up your work laptop in a cafe or at the airport. This small change can keep your data safer — and that’s always a good thing.
Got questions or need help with IT for your business? Reach out anytime.