Cortana consent (legacy)
The `CortanaConsent` DWORD value records the current user's consent state for the legacy Cortana experience that was integrated with Windows Search.
since 0.9.8.11
Purpose
Show registry keys (1)
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search\CortanaConsent
The CortanaConsent DWORD value records the current user's consent state for the legacy Cortana experience that was integrated with Windows Search. A value of 0 represents consent not being granted or having been withdrawn. On Windows releases that honor this value, the associated online Cortana services are unavailable to that user.
This value is not stored under a Policies key and is not a documented Group Policy setting. Microsoft does not publish an authoritative, version-independent definition of its value semantics. It must therefore not be treated as equivalent to the documented Allow Cortana policy or its AllowCortana registry value.
Notes
Additional effects
Where supported by the installed Windows release, personal Cortana capabilities and other connected features that depend on Cortana consent may become unavailable. This does not inherently disable local Windows search or search indexing.
CortanaConsent = 0 is not a general control for web search results. Whether Windows Search sends queries to Bing or displays web content is controlled by other, version-dependent settings.
Security
The setting can prevent data transfers and processing that occur solely through use of the legacy Cortana experience. It does not stop Windows diagnostic data collection or communications made by other connected Windows features. It also does not independently control access to the microphone, location, contacts, or online speech recognition.
The value is neither a security boundary nor an access-control mechanism. Microsoft documents separate device-level policies for enforcing Cortana restrictions across an organization.
Possible side effects
On older Windows 10 releases, Cortana-provided answers, reminders, voice-assisted features, and other personal-assistant capabilities may no longer be available. The exact effect depends on the Windows release and its Cortana implementation.
Notes
The value applies only to the affected user profile. It is primarily associated with the legacy Cortana integration; Microsoft changed Cortana's architecture beginning with Windows 10, version 2004. The standalone Cortana app in Windows was retired in 2023, so this value may have no effect on current Windows releases.
Describing the value as stopping participation in Cortana data collection is accurate only in this limited context. It does not imply that all data collection by Windows or Microsoft services is disabled.
Microsoft documentation
Microsoft Learn: Manage connections from Windows operating system components to Microsoft services
Microsoft Support: End of support for Cortana