A hacker’s arrest just revealed how Microsoft can track your Windows device

A hacker used a VPN to stay anonymous. Microsoft's Windows Global Device Identifier logged his activity anyway and handed it to the FBI.

Fransebas

Jul 8, 2026 - 03:17

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A hacker’s arrest just revealed how Microsoft can track your Windows device

Microsoft knew what websites his Windows PC visited.

Sunrise King / Unsplash

A teenager allegedly used a VPN to cover his tracks while hacking a US jewelry retailer, but Microsoft knew anyway.

Court documents unsealed in the US case against Peter Stokes, a 19-year-old dual US-Estonian citizen accused of being a member of the notorious Scattered Spider hacking group, reveal that Microsoft provided the FBI with records tied to a tracking mechanism called the Global Device Identifier, or GDID.

Microsoft / Digital Trends

Here’s what you need to know

The identifier, which is automatically assigned to every Windows installation, was enough to link Stokes’ computer to specific websites and third-party services, even though he was running a VPN.

Stokes was arrested in Helsinki in April 2026. He was trying to board a flight to Japan, carrying two two-terabyte hard drives. He now faces federal charges in Chicago for conspiracy, computer intrusion, and fraud (via PCMag).

However, the case surely draws attention to the GDID. For most people, this is the first time they’re hearing the term GDID.

Paulo Vargas / Digital Trends

What exactly is a Global Device ID (GDID)?

GDID is a unique number tied to a Windows installation on a device, and it can stay the same across normal Windows updates.

According to the criminal complaint, Microsoft’s records showed that Stokes’ GDID accessed specific pages on ngrok, a developer tunneling tool, at precise timestamps, which was enough to reconstruct his activity and link it to the hack.

This identifier can apparently persist across updates, has no simple opt-out, and may allow Microsoft to connect a Windows installation to activity on third-party services, not just Microsoft ones.

Person sitting and using a Windows Surface computer with Windows 11.

Windows 11 / Microsoft

In other words, Microsoft may have a record of which websites your Windows PC visited, independent of your browser history and cookie tracking. You can technically opt out of it by reinstalling Windows, as it generates a new GDID.

This is exactly what makes the Stokes case worth paying attention to, even if you have no plans to hack a jewelry store with a VPN anytime soon.

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