The difference is HOW 'they' (the big techs) store their user's data and to whom they share it with. MSFT does their data storage/sharing differently than the other boys. if I get a chance today.. I'll put together some stuff that shows all this. Compare TOSs. Apple stores but keeps the user hashes private TO the user (and/or device) NOT the company. Google/FB/Twatter etc share user data amongst each other and 'The Company' . (vs user based storage of personal data like Apple). MSFT is again different from these two models giving a 'better' level of security. But nothing is perfect. :) Basically… MSFT does not 'share' their user's data to the level of Google/FB/Twatter etc. but also does NOT store user privacy hashes on the user's personal device ONLY like Apple does. MSFT is kinda in the middle. I know…convoluted as hell. However… the amount of data that MSFT DOES capture will make a user think that they have a virus on their computer. The other thing to keep in mind is that the GOVT has almost ALL of their 'old systems' on Windows…so to upgrade… well… the thinking is "lets just go with what we've got" …don't forget the license thing too. So upgrades will be way easier, integration with other agencies will be easier… I can see why they went with MSFT. But I wish they'd just all convert to UNIX based platforms. But that's just me. :)