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Last updated: March 2010

Using Office.com templates

The New tab in the Microsoft Office Backstage view (Click the File tab, and then click New) can provide you with up-to-date assistance downloaded from Office.com for documents that are based on templates. You can also send feedback on the templates and provide a numeric rating for each template that you download.

When you open a template or a file based on a template, Word 2010, depending on your online Help settings, contacts Office.com. It sends the ID for that template, the program, and version that you are currently using, together with standard computer information.

The template ID is used to identify the original template as downloaded from Office.com or included in your Word 2010 installation. It does not uniquely identify your document. The ID is the same for all users of the same template.

Linking to pictures and other documents

If you choose to create a link to an image, file, data source, or other document on your hard disk or on a server, the path to that file is saved into your document. In some cases, the link might include your user name or information about servers on your network. In the case of a data connection, you can choose to save a user name or password within the data connection link.

Also, when you apply an XML Schema to a document, a path to the XML Schema that you have created is saved to the document. In some cases, that path might include your user name.

Printing

When you print a Word 2010 document, and then save that document, Word 2010 saves the path to your printer with the document. In some cases, the path might include a user name or computer name.

Document Workspace sites

Word 2010 allows you to access a Document Workspace site on a Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 site. A Document Workspace site is a shared space where you can collaborate with other team members on one or more documents.

When you access a Document Workspace site, Word 2010 downloads data from the Document Workspace site to provide you with information about that workspace site. This data includes:

  • Name of the SharePoint Foundation site

  • URL or address of the site

  • Names, e-mail addresses, and permission levels of the site users

  • Lists of the documents, tasks, and other information available from the site

Word 2010 also stores a list of the SharePoint Foundation sites that you have visited on your computer, in the form of cookies. This list is used to provide you with quick access to the sites that you have visited before. The list of sites that you have visited is not accessed by Microsoft and is not exposed to the Internet unless you choose to make the list more broadly available.

SharePoint Foundation

Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 provides shared, Web-based Workspace sites where you can collaborate on documents or meetings.

When you access a SharePoint site, by using either your Web browser or any Office program, the site saves cookies to your computer if you have permissions to create a new subsite on that site. Taken together, these cookies form a list of sites to which you have permissions. This list is used by several Office programs to provide you with quick access to the sites that you have visited before.

The list of sites that you have visited is not accessed by Microsoft and is not exposed to the Internet unless you choose to make the list more broadly available.

In SharePoint Foundation, when you create a new Web site or list, or add or invite people to an existing Web site or list, the site saves the following for each person, including your:

  • Full name

  • E-mail address

A user ID is added to every element that you or the other users of the site add to or modify on the site. As with all of the content on the SharePoint site, only administrators and members of the site itself will have access to this information.

All elements of the SharePoint site include two fields: Created By and Modified By. The Created By field is filled in with the user name of the person who originally created the element and the date when it was created. The Modified By field is filled in with the user name of the person who last modified the Word 2010 document and the date when it was last modified.

Administrators of the servers where SharePoint sites are hosted have access to some data from these sites, which is used for analyzing the usage patterns of the site and improving the percentage of time that the site is available. This data is available only to the server administrators and is not shared with Microsoft unless Microsoft is hosting the SharePoint site. The data specifically captured includes the names, e-mail addresses, and permissions of everyone with access to the site.

All users with access to a particular SharePoint site might search and view all content available on that site.

Auditing

Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 provides auditing features that allow administrators to keep a reliable audit trail of how users are working with certain content.

When SharePoint Foundation administrators enable the Auditing feature, the server automatically records in the SharePoint content database certain actions performed by the user. These actions include view, edit, check-in, and check-out. For each recorded action, the server records identifying information about the file, the action, and the user's SharePoint ID. No data is sent to Microsoft as part of this feature.

This feature is off by default and is available only to administrators of SharePoint sites where content is stored.

Fax service

The fax service allows you to send a fax over the Internet and organize the faxes that you have sent in Word 2010. To use the fax service, you must sign up with a fax service provider, separate from Microsoft, who processes the faxes and sends them over the Internet. Microsoft does not collect any data by the fax service feature.

When you sign up for the fax service, the fax service provider creates a registration package that is stored by the fax service provider and Word 2010. The package consists of the address of the fax service provider's Web site and a "token" confirming your access to the fax service provider. When you send a fax from an Office program, this registration package is appended to the document.

You can also use the fax service to calculate the price of a fax without actually sending the fax. If you choose to calculate the price of a fax, Word 2010 uses an encrypted connection to send your registration token, the telephone number where the fax is to be sent, and the number of pages of the fax to the fax service provider. Microsoft does not receive or store this information.

Research service

Word 2010 allows you to request information about a particular term or phrase from a number of premium content providers. When you request a search on a particular word or phrase, Word 2010 uses the Internet to send the text that you requested, the software product that you are currently using, the locale to which your system is set, and authorization information indicating that you have the right to download research information, if needed by the third party.

Word 2010 sends this information to a service provided by Microsoft or a third-party provider that you select. This service returns information about the word or phrase that you requested.

Frequently, the information that you receive includes a link to additional information from the service’s Web site. If you click this link, the service’s provider might add a cookie to your system to identify you for future transactions. Microsoft is not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party Web sites and services. Microsoft does not receive or store any of this information unless you have queried a Microsoft-owned service.

You can prevent Word 2010 from automatically checking for and installing new research service by doing the following:

  1. Click the File tab.

  2. Under Help, click Options.

  3. Click Trust Center.

  4. Click Trust Center Settings.

  5. Click Privacy Options, and then clear the Allow the Research task pane to check for and install new services check box.

Translation service

Word 2010 allows you to translate all or part of your document by using a bilingual dictionary or a machine translation. You have a choice of how you want to translate your document.

You can select or enter a word or phrase that you want to translate, or you can choose to translate the entire document, in either case, by selecting the applicable translation option in the Research pane. You can also use the Document Tips feature to translate by resting your cursor on the words you want translated. The Document Tips feature is turned off by default. You can turn the feature on by clicking the Review tab, and then clicking Translate in the Language group.

If you select or enter a word or phrase that you want to translate, the phrase that you have entered is compared to a bilingual dictionary. Some bilingual dictionaries are included with your software, and others are available from Office.com. If a word or phrase you enter is not in the bilingual dictionary included with your software, the word or phrase is sent unencrypted to a Microsoft or a third-party translation service.

If you want to translate your entire document, it is sent unencrypted to a Microsoft or a third-party translation service. As with any information that is sent unencrypted over the Internet, it might be possible for other people to see the word, phrase, or document you are translating.

If you choose to use one of the dictionaries available on Office.com or a third-party translation service, Word 2010 uses the Internet to send the text that you requested, the type of software you have, and the locale and language (Click the File tab. Under Help, click Options. Click Language.) to which your system is set. For third-party translation services, Word 2010 might also send previously cached authentication information indicating that you previously signed up for access to the Web site.

Instant messaging and notifications

Word 2010 provides you with the ability to send instant messages from within the program itself and provides you with the ability to be alerted when people are online or when certain changes are made to shared documents or Workspace sites.

Word 2010 can use an instant messaging client to provide you with the ability to see the online presence of other people and to send messages to them. Word 2010 includes a Web control that allows the instant messaging presence to be displayed within a Web page. Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 pages and Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 pages both make use of this control. Neither of these types of pages transmits presence data back to the Web server.

This Web control can be used to transmit presence data from your instant messaging program to the Web server. By default, presence data can only be sent to intranet sites, trusted sites, and sites on the local computer.

New file formats

Word 2010 uses file formats that are based on XML. These XML file formats are extensible, meaning that users can specify additional schemas or tags in the files. An add-in or other third-party code can also attach additional metadata information to these XML file formats that are not be viewable in Word 2010.

You can verify the metadata that has been associated with an XML file by viewing it in a text viewer.

Comments

By default, if you save comments to a file, Word 2010 adds your initials to each comment. This information is then available to anyone who has access to your file.

You can remove your personal information from these comments by doing the following:

  1. Click the File tab.

  2. Click Info.

  3. Click Check for Issues, and then click Inspect Document.

Track Changes

By default, when you make changes to a file with the Track Changes feature turned on, your user name and/or initials are stored in the document and associated with the changes that you make. This information, including both the original and revised text, is then available to anyone who has access to your file.

After these changes are accepted or rejected, your name is removed. You can also remove your personal information from these changes by clicking the File tab, clicking Info, clicking Check for Issues, and then clicking Inspect Document.

Where your name might be stored

In certain instances, Word 2010 stores your name to provide you with a better experience when using some features. For example, your name is stored in these locations:

  • Author fields

  • AuthorName file property

You can remove your name from these fields and properties by clicking the File tab, clicking Info, clicking Check for Issues, and then clicking Inspect Document.

Microsoft Office solutions created by other companies might also include your name or other personal information in the custom properties associated with your file.

If you use the Microsoft Office Web Control, Microsoft Excel Data Access, DataCalc, or other features that allow you to connect directly to another data source, your authorization information (user ID and password) might be saved within your document. To change or delete this authorization information, you need to change the properties of the connection appropriately.

Other hidden data and metadata

By default, every file saved by Word 2010 includes file properties such as the following:

  • Author

  • Manager

  • Company

  • Last Saved By

  • Names of document reviewers

In addition, other properties might be saved to the file, depending on the features or third-party solutions that you use. For example, if your document is part of a document workflow, additional file properties to track the workflow are saved.

This information is then available to anyone who has access to your file.

You can remove your name from these properties by clicking the File tab, clicking Info, clicking Check for Issues, and then clicking Inspect Document.

The Inspect Document feature can also be used to remove other types of data that might not be available in all views, such as comments and revisions. We recommend that you run Inspect Document on any document that you plan to make publicly available.

Hidden data and metadata can also be included in Microsoft Office files by using the Microsoft Office Object Model. For example, you can make pictures invisible in the Microsoft Office Object Model, which means that they cannot be seen when you open the file, but the picture is stored in the file and can later be made visible.

Combine accuracy

For better combine accuracy, Word 2010 stores a random 10-digit number in the document. This randomly generated number helps determine the order in which changes occur when you use the Combine feature. If you want, you can remove this random 10-digit number by doing the following:

  1. Click the File tab.

  2. Under Help, click Options.

  3. Click Trust Center.

  4. Click Trust Center Settings.

  5. Click Privacy Options, and then, under Document-specific settings, clear the Store random number to increase Combine accuracy check box.

Recording macros

Macro recording allows you to record a sequence of actions so that you can reproduce the actions at a later time. If you choose to record a macro, your user name is saved as a comment in the code when the macro is initially created. You can manually remove your user name from this location.

Digital signatures

A digital signature is an optional feature that can help you to authenticate the identity of the person who sent you a document. A digital signature is a unique encrypted value of the data in the document that you are signing. When you send a document with a digital signature, the signature is sent to the recipient, along with the data in the document and a trusted digital certificate from you (the sender). The digital certificate is issued by a Certification Authority, such as VeriSign, and contains information to authenticate the sender and verify that the original contents of the document have not been altered. Word might automatically contact the certification authority online to verify the digital signature.

When you sign a document, you see a dialog box that shows the information that is included in the digital signature, such as your system date and time, operating system version number, Microsoft Office version number, and Word version number.

Information Rights Management

Information Rights Management (IRM) allows you to give certain users or groups the right to access and modify a document. Despite some similarities, IRM is not the same as Document Protection. IRM allows you to set permissions to the entire document for specific actions, such as printing the document or forwarding the document to other people, as well as for reading or editing the document.

When you store a document with IRM enabled, Word 2010 saves to the document a list of every user who has rights to that document and what their permissions are. This information is encrypted so that only the document owners can access this information.

Additionally, documents with IRM enabled contain content licenses. A content license contains an e-mail address, permission, and authentication information. Each time anyone attempts to open a document with IRM enabled, Word 2010 checks the content licenses saved in the document against the user's identity. If the user has never opened the document before, Word 2010 contacts an IRM server, verifies the user's identity, downloads a new content license for the user (provided that the user has the necessary rights), and saves that content license to the document.

Document owners have the option to avoid saving content licenses to the document. However, if this content license is not saved to the document, Word 2010 must contact the IRM server every time the document is opened. If Word 2010 is not connected to a network or cannot contact the IRM server, the document cannot be opened.

Document Protection

Document Protection allows you to protect your Word 2010 document in various ways, such as giving only certain users the rights to edit, make comments, or read the document.

When you use Document Protection, you are asked to enter user IDs into the Word 2010 document. These user IDs might be in the form of Windows NT Domain accounts (for example DOMAIN\user name) or Windows Live ID e-mail addresses (for example, someone@example.com). These user IDs are stored whenever you give a user the rights to read or change a range of text.

It is possible to protect the Word 2010 document without using a password. If you choose to protect the document without a password, anyone reading the document can see the user IDs of those who have been given access. Also, if the document is saved as XML or HTML, the user IDs are available to anyone who reads the file.

If you want to further restrict access to the user IDs, you can choose to save this file with a password or with Information Rights Management (IRM). Only you and other people who have been granted access can see these user IDs.

Office file validation failures

When you open certain earlier versions of Word files in Microsoft Office, Office file validation checks whether the file structure matches the specification from Microsoft for that file format. If the file fails this validation, Microsoft Office opens it in a Protected View.

A copy the problematic file that fails Office file validation is saved on your computer after you exit Word. Microsoft Error Reporting periodically asks you whether you agree to send a copy of these files to Microsoft. For more information about Microsoft Error Reporting, including a full privacy statement, see Privacy Statement for the Microsoft Error Reporting Service.

Office Auto Revisions

Word 2010 automatically saves copies of your document while you edit them. This helps you recover documents if you accidently close a document without saving your changes. You can choose not to automatically save copies of the documents by doing the following:

  1. Click the File tab.

  2. Under Help, click Options.

  3. Click Save.

  4. Under Save documents, clear the Keep the last Auto Recovered file if I close without saving check box.

You can access and delete the last saved versions of previously saved documents by clicking the File tab, clicking Info, and then clicking the document that you want under Versions. You access and delete the last automatically saved versions for newly created documents by clicking the File tab, clicking Info, clicking Manage Versions, and then clicking Recover Unsaved Documents. Word 2010 periodically deletes the automatically saved documents if you do not open and use them. For more information, see Recover your Office files.

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