On: Windows 10: HOSTS file blocking telemetry is now flagged as a risk

[discordance]

Is there the option for European users to have this data removed and not collected again? - If not, would this be a GDPR violation?

[msla → discordance]

The only way to be sure there is no data being collected is to stop using Windows. It's closed-source.

[majkinetor → msla]

Far from only way. You can also disconnect or make something similar like firewall everything except tor browser.

[sergeykish → majkinetor]

And they could covert channel in TCP headers [1] (provided they can intercept the traffic).

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Covert_channel

[majkinetor → sergeykish]

Yeah, that 'provided' part makes it unusable in this case.