How to remove harvesting from a new Windows 10 instance

Microsoft has a sea of settings that have their best interests at heart. The biggest one being Cortana, and placing ads on the lock screen.

When receiving a new laptop or PC that has Windows 10 installed, there are a number of things that you can do to shut Microsoft out.

• Cortana / Gear Icon / User Cortana when locked: Off
• Cortana / Gear Icon / Let Cortana Pipe up: Off
• Cortana / Gear Icon / Everything: Off

http://www.howtogeek.com/265027/how-to-disable-cortana-in-windows-10

Microsoft opts you into everything as default. Opt out as below, but take care that there isn't something here that you actually use. These are just my settings. Camera and mics, still work in Skype or Hangouts, etc.

• All Settings / System / Notifications / Cortana: Off
• All Settings / System / Offline maps / Map updates: Off
• All Settings / Devices / Mouse & Touchpad / Three finger Tap: Nothing
• All Settings / Network / Connect to suggested hotspots: Off
• All Settings / Network / Paid wifi services: Off
• All Settings / Personalisation / ** (see “Delete the ads” below)
• All Settings / Privacy / General / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Location / Location for this device: Off
• All Settings / Privacy / Location / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Camera / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Microphone / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Notifications/ turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Account Info / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Contact / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Calendar / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Call History / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Email / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Messaging / turn everything off
• All Settings / Privacy / Feedback / Never

Even though you may have said no to feedback above, this setting really won't be honoured in any serious way. Occasionally the telemetry service will spin up and start sending stuff back to Microsoft. To completely disable it:

• Open your registry editor.
• Make your way to this key:
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\DataCollection
• Create a new 32-bit DWORD value named AllowTelemetry and set it to 0
• Close Regedit
• Click the start menu and type: Services
• Press enter to load your services.
• Locate one called: Connected User Experiences and Telemetry service
• Right click and select Properties.
• Click on Stop.
• Change Startup type to: disable.
• Close and reboot.

Microsoft in their cheek enabled ads to be shown to you on the lock screen. Disney tickets? Really?

http://www.howtogeek.com/243263/how-to-disable-ads-on-your-windows-10-lock-screen

And then the curtains are closed behind the Windows.

Upcoming changes to Windows, that can be pro-actively disabled as well:

https://www.thurrott.com/windows/windows-10/106424/windows-10-tip-turn-off-file-explorer-advertising (File Explorer Advertising)