Yesterday, I tried Microsoft’s product, Money 2006. It uploaded part of my financial records (potentially including over a year’s worth of transactions, account numbers, and account passwords) to the MSN servers. I told the software to remove the information from the servers and then uninstalled the application.
Having account information on a server not within your control would make you a little twitchy, right? And if that server resides in the clutches of the Evil Empire? (Don’t even get me started on the DRM in Windows Vista.)
To start Microsoft Money 2006, you must log on with a Passport account, even if you plan to work offline. According to a review of Microsoft Money Premium on Amazon, the privacy policy states “…if you choose to use some of the Internet-based services, you may submit sign-in credentials and/or financial data, consisting of some or all of the content of your Money file.” Feeling paranoid yet?
I did. I decided to remove all accounts that had been associated with the Microsoft Money file. I deleted my Passport account (after fist changing the password). I changed the passwords on my bank account. After work, I went to the bank and transferred most of the funds out of the old account and set up a new one.
Granted, the last measure probably wasn’t necessary. If Microsoft really did delete my data from the servers as the software claimed, there should be nothing to worry about… unless the “delete” process is similar to deleting email from a Gmail account.
