diff --git a/.pipelines/modelkit-official-build.yml b/.pipelines/modelkit-official-build.yml
index 73df877ff..2b7ca7d89 100644
--- a/.pipelines/modelkit-official-build.yml
+++ b/.pipelines/modelkit-official-build.yml
@@ -130,14 +130,74 @@ extends:
               - script: python -m pip install --upgrade build twine packaging
                 displayName: 'Install build tools'
 
-              # Telemetry is disabled in shipped artifacts: the empty iKey
-              # placeholder in src/winml/modelkit/telemetry/constants.py
-              # ships unchanged in both sdist and wheel. The telemetry init
-              # path short-circuits to disabled when iKey is empty (no
-              # events emitted, no LoggerProvider constructed). To re-enable,
-              # restore an iKey-injection step before the wheel build.
-              - script: python -m build --outdir "$(ob_outputDirectory)"
-                displayName: 'Build sdist and wheel'
+              # Build sdist BEFORE iKey injection so the source archive
+              # ships with the empty placeholder. The PyPI sdist must
+              # never carry the real iKey.
+              - script: python -m build --sdist --outdir "$(ob_outputDirectory)"
+                displayName: 'Build sdist (with empty iKey placeholder)'
+
+              - powershell: |
+                  $path = "$(Build.SourcesDirectory)\src\winml\modelkit\telemetry\constants.py"
+                  $key = $env:INSTRUMENTATION_KEY
+                  if (-not $key) { throw "INSTRUMENTATION_KEY env var is empty or missing" }
+                  $content = [System.IO.File]::ReadAllText($path)
+                  $placeholder = 'INSTRUMENTATION_KEY = ""'
+                  if (-not $content.Contains($placeholder)) { throw "placeholder not found in $path" }
+                  $newContent = $content.Replace($placeholder, "INSTRUMENTATION_KEY = ""$key""")
+                  [System.IO.File]::WriteAllText($path, $newContent)
+                  Write-Host "Injected iKey into $path"
+                env:
+                  INSTRUMENTATION_KEY: $(INSTRUMENTATION_KEY)
+                displayName: 'Inject InstrumentationKey into constants.py'
+
+              # Build wheel AFTER injection so the wheel carries the
+              # real iKey.
+              - script: python -m build --wheel --outdir "$(ob_outputDirectory)"
+                displayName: 'Build wheel (with injected iKey)'
+
+              # Verify the wheel carries the real iKey AND the sdist
+              # carries the empty placeholder. Reading constants.py out
+              # of each archive directly catches build-cache / ordering
+              # bugs that disk-only checks would miss.
+              - powershell: |
+                  Add-Type -AssemblyName System.IO.Compression
+                  Add-Type -AssemblyName System.IO.Compression.FileSystem
+
+                  function Read-ConstantsFromArchive($archivePath) {
+                    $zip = [System.IO.Compression.ZipFile]::OpenRead($archivePath)
+                    try {
+                      $entry = $zip.Entries | Where-Object { $_.FullName -like "*telemetry/constants.py" } | Select-Object -First 1
+                      if (-not $entry) { throw "telemetry/constants.py not found in $archivePath" }
+                      $reader = [System.IO.StreamReader]::new($entry.Open())
+                      try { return $reader.ReadToEnd() } finally { $reader.Close() }
+                    } finally { $zip.Dispose() }
+                  }
+
+                  $wheel = Get-ChildItem "$(ob_outputDirectory)\*.whl" | Select-Object -First 1
+                  if (-not $wheel) { throw "no wheel found in $(ob_outputDirectory)" }
+                  $wheelContent = Read-ConstantsFromArchive $wheel.FullName
+                  if ($wheelContent -match 'INSTRUMENTATION_KEY\s*=\s*""') {
+                    throw "wheel contains empty INSTRUMENTATION_KEY placeholder - injection failed"
+                  }
+                  Write-Host "Wheel verified - constants.py has non-empty iKey"
+
+                  $sdist = Get-ChildItem "$(ob_outputDirectory)\*.tar.gz" | Select-Object -First 1
+                  if (-not $sdist) { throw "no sdist found in $(ob_outputDirectory)" }
+                  # tar.gz inside a zip-aware reader: open via SharpCompress would
+                  # add a dependency. Inspect by extracting via tar (Windows 10+
+                  # ships with tar.exe) and reading the file from disk.
+                  $sdistTemp = Join-Path "$(Agent.TempDirectory)" "sdist_verify"
+                  if (Test-Path $sdistTemp) { Remove-Item -Recurse -Force $sdistTemp }
+                  New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $sdistTemp | Out-Null
+                  tar -xzf $sdist.FullName -C $sdistTemp
+                  $sdistConstants = Get-ChildItem -Path $sdistTemp -Recurse -Filter "constants.py" | Where-Object { $_.FullName -like "*telemetry*" } | Select-Object -First 1
+                  if (-not $sdistConstants) { throw "constants.py not found in sdist" }
+                  $sdistContent = Get-Content $sdistConstants.FullName -Raw
+                  if ($sdistContent -notmatch 'INSTRUMENTATION_KEY\s*=\s*""') {
+                    throw "sdist contains a non-empty iKey - sdist must ship clean"
+                  }
+                  Write-Host "Sdist verified - constants.py has empty placeholder"
+                displayName: 'Verify wheel has iKey, sdist does not'
 
               - script: python -m twine check "$(ob_outputDirectory)\*.whl" "$(ob_outputDirectory)\*.tar.gz"
                 continueOnError: true
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index db90d3d99..056013a09 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -272,6 +272,24 @@ Each arrow is a WinML CLI command. You can enter the pipeline at any stage (for
 
 ---
 
+## :lock: Data / Telemetry
+
+Official WinML CLI releases can collect **unlinked pseudonymized** usage telemetry
+to help improve the product. Telemetry is classified as **Optional**. A one-time
+prompt on your first run asks for consent (default: accept — press **Enter** to
+enable, type `n` to decline).
+
+**Control** — edit `%USERPROFILE%\.winml\config.json`:
+
+- Set `telemetry.consent` to `"disabled"` to opt out
+- Set `telemetry.consent` to `"enabled"` to opt in
+- Delete the file to re-show the first-run prompt on the next run
+
+See [docs/Privacy.md](docs/Privacy.md) for the full list of what is and is not
+collected, event schemas, CI auto-disable behavior, and storage locations.
+
+---
+
 ## :handshake: Contributing
 
 We welcome contributions! Please see the [contribution guidelines](CONTRIBUTING.md).
diff --git a/docs/Privacy.md b/docs/Privacy.md
index 97add4ba1..2dd9094bc 100644
--- a/docs/Privacy.md
+++ b/docs/Privacy.md
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 # WinML CLI Privacy Statement
 
-WinML CLI collects limited, anonymous telemetry to help improve the
-product. This page describes exactly what is collected, what is not,
+WinML CLI collects limited, unlinked pseudonymized telemetry to help
+improve the product. This page describes exactly what is collected, what is not,
 and how to control it.
 
 ## Data category
diff --git a/src/winml/modelkit/telemetry/consent.py b/src/winml/modelkit/telemetry/consent.py
index 359c61b9e..61c6a9343 100644
--- a/src/winml/modelkit/telemetry/consent.py
+++ b/src/winml/modelkit/telemetry/consent.py
@@ -45,10 +45,10 @@ def _default_config_path() -> Path | None:
 # stored records with an older version are treated as unrecorded on
 # read so the user sees the updated notice and re-consents. Records
 # predating the version field are grandfathered as the current version.
-_CONSENT_VERSION: int = 1
+_CONSENT_VERSION: int = 2
 
 _PROMPT_TEXT = """\
-WinML CLI can collect anonymous usage data to help improve the product.
+WinML CLI can collect unlinked pseudonymized usage data to help improve the product.
 
 What is collected:
   - Command name, duration, success/failure