- Users of Google Chrome on Windows 10 and 11 are reporting that they have suddenly found themselves using Microsoft Edge, with their Chrome browsing sessions appearing in Edge.
- This may be due to a bug or an accidentally clicked-through dialog box related to a feature in Edge that imports browsing data from Chrome.
- The setting, called “Import browsing data from Chrome,” continually imports data from Chrome every time Edge is launched, unlike the one-time import offered for Firefox.
- There have been concerns about Microsoft’s tactics for pushing its own browser, including notifications, pop-ups, and full-screen messages promoting Edge and Bing.
- Microsoft has become more aggressive in pushing various subscriptions and features in recent years, making a “clean” Windows install feel less so.
- It remains unclear whether the Edge data-import issue is intentional or a bug, highlighting concerns about Microsoft’s methods for promoting its own software.
And the same for a domain joined PC. Fresh install of Windows 11, open edge, find that you are already signed into edge on a Microsoft account that Windows helpfully created for you that mirrors your domain account.
You told edge that you do not want to transfer over your data. And it says okay but you’ll notice a little blue hyperlink that says manage above that.
And if you click that it tells you all the stuff it’s going to copy over anyway.
So you sign out of that and you untick all of the boxes and you close edge and you reopen it and you find that you are still signed in to your Microsoft account that was created for you with your domain credentials in Bing search and you have to sign out of that as well.
Edge has created an account for you, signed you in in two separate locations, and automatically set itself to ingest all of your account credentials and it does not even tell you what it has done unless you click through multiple paths to find it.
The game industry is going hard on “GaaS” or “Games as a Service.” Microsoft is going hard on “OS as a service” because, in the same way, they want your data or your money as you use the product