- A report commissioned by Mozilla accuses Microsoft of using ‘malicious design’ to undermine browser choices in Windows 11
- It allegedly includes trick wording, nagging, preselection, and generally dubious tactics to push Edge over other browsers
- Noting that the situation is better in the European Economic Area due to regulations there, the report notes that “regulatory measures are working” and calls on authorities elsewhere to take a similar stance
Mozilla, the maker of Firefox, has released another report claiming that Microsoft is not maintaining an appropriate level playing field for web browsers on Windows and is unfairly pushing users towards Edge.
As Mozilla makes clear, it released the first ‘Over the Edge’ report – on ‘How Microsoft’s design tactics compromise free browser choice’ – two years ago, and the follow-up has just arrived (as spotted by Eteknix).
It’s not actually written by Mozilla, I should note, but two independent researchers commissioned by the Firefox maker (Harry Brignull and Cennydd Bowles, the same couple who wrote the first article). It’s taking user feedback from the US, UK, India and Germany regarding “browser choice key journeys” on Windows 11 and 10.
In a nutshell, they conclude that: “Microsoft continues to implement malicious designs to undermine people’s browser choices.”
Specifically, it involves, according to the report: “Trick formulation, obstruction, visual interference, pre-selection, nagging and coercive action – at nearly every step of the user journey.”
Some of the worst excesses highlighted are the pop-up banner Edge users see when they go to the Chrome download page (trying to get them to stick with the Microsoft browser, which it says has the same technology as Chrome but with the “added trust of Microsoft”), and nagging Windows about using Edge as the default browser somehow.
The report also notes how Edge is pre-pinned to the Windows taskbar, and how a migration from Windows 10 to Windows 11 resets Edge as the default browser, overriding any previous selection. There are also a lot of allegations about trick wording, as well as an observation that Microsoft is using Copilot (AI) to open links in Edge instead of your default browser.
On the subject of AI, the report notes: “The researchers suggest that a sequence of seemingly minor consent requests across Windows and Edge could be combined into a ‘pipeline’ that could funnel browsing data – potentially including data originating from rival browsers – into Microsoft’s advertising and personalization systems.”
Notably, Germany – included as a representative country within the European Economic Area (EEA), which has various regulatory requirements Microsoft must comply with – escapes quite a few of these excesses (Chrome download nonsense included).
Despite that, the researchers claim that their broad conclusion that “Microsoft does not allow people to download and install an alternative browser, set it as their default, or continue to use it as their default without harmful interference” is, they claim, true “across every region tested.”
Analysis: a call to regulate
Yes, this is a report commissioned by a browser rival, but these findings are largely unsurprising, and Microsoft has long been known to be overzealously promoting Edge in Windows 11 and trying various dubious shenanigans to get the browser into play, as the report suggests. On the other hand, of course, Google pulls similar stunts with Chrome.
Still, that’s not an excuse, and no browser should actively try to dissuade people from downloading another rival browser. What Mozilla also points out, of course, is that Microsoft is in a special position of power here, given that it owns the world’s primary desktop OS, and it’s leveraging that platform in various ways to push Edge adoption.
Whether it’s worked for Microsoft or not — spoiler alert, it hasn’t — is irrelevant, as this behavior is obviously not ethical or fair, and while it may not have dented Chrome’s reign as the best browser, it may have damaged lesser rivals like Firefox.
While the EEA may have a significantly better balance of browser equality in Windows, the report notes that this is of course because the rules have forced Microsoft’s hand. This is probably another negative, as it shows that Microsoft only respects user choice regarding browsers when forced to do so.
Mozilla concludes with the following paragraph, which sums it all up nicely: “We once again call on Microsoft to abandon these harmful patterns worldwide. And we call on regulators in the EU, UK, US, India and elsewhere to view this report as proof that regulatory intervention is working – there’s still a lot to do.”
So if Microsoft really wants to talk about “added trust,” how about taking action on some of these issues? Or is this just a case of having to be more trustworthy than Google?
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