Microsoft began rolling out Recall to European Economic Area users in late July 2025, ending a months-long delay caused by regulatory concerns. The rollout came via Windows 11 24H2 Release Preview updates, with broad availability following in the August 2025 Patch Tuesday update.
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Key Facts:
Initial delay: EU rollout postponed from April 2025 due to GDPR privacy concerns
EU-exclusive feature: Users can export snapshots to trusted third-party apps via encrypted export code
Export limitation: Code shown only once; if lost, requires full Recall reset (deletes all snapshots)
Requirements: Copilot+ PC with 40+ TOPS NPU, BitLocker enabled, Windows Hello configured
Initial delay: EU rollout postponed from April 2025 due to GDPR privacy concerns
EU-exclusive feature: Users can export snapshots to trusted third-party apps via encrypted export code
Export limitation: Code shown only once; if lost, requires full Recall reset (deletes all snapshots)
Requirements: Copilot+ PC with 40+ TOPS NPU, BitLocker enabled, Windows Hello configured
Privacy experts noted the irony: Recall arrived in Europe the same week Microsoft excluded the region from Copilot Vision—its cloud-based screenshot analysis feature—citing regulatory complexity. The local-only Recall apparently passed Microsoft's GDPR risk assessment, though independent researchers remain skeptical about third-party data capture and consent mechanisms.
Sources: ITdaily · TechCentral.ie · Dutch IT Channel
