It can be turned off now:
https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/supporting/faq#_how-to-di...
https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/supporting/faq#_how-to-di...
> You will need to apply these changes after every update to disable collection of usage data. These changes do not survive product updates.
https://github.com/Microsoft/vscode/issues/3182
https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/supporting/faq#_how-to-di...