A recent study conducted quantifies Microsoft Edge as the least private browsers in the world as a flaw found in its working dictate that device hardware and details of the web page histories visited by users is sent to its identifiers. The identifiers, in this case, are the back-end servers for Edge. This system of compromise is not followed by Microsoft’s competition in any sense. Over some time, this gathered information can be used to target individuals and wipe down their privacy virtually.
The study was conducted by researchers at Trinity College, Dublin. The group compared Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Brave Browser, Microsoft edge, and Yandex Browser and peddled Microsoft Edge and Yandex Browser the least private browsers out of the bunch. As intrusiveness regarding data of any user remains in the dark in the current day and time, Microsoft’s approach to data privacy and digital security raises serious questions about how their browser fares.
The research was conducted by Douglas J. Leith from the school of Computer Science and Statistics concluded that Brave Browser was the best private rated browser while the most popular choice of browsers such as Google Chrome, and Firefox were rated somewhere in the middle of the pile. The study states, “Edge sends the hardware UUID (universally unique identifier) of the device to Microsoft, a strong and enduring identifier that cannot be easily changed or deleted.” “To make matters worse, Edge has a search autocomplete functionality which shares details of web pages visited, transfers web page information to servers that are not related to search autocomplete.”
Furthermore, the user has no control over the function as they cannot turn the function off. The study further notes that Microsoft Edge will send constant identifiers to their users that can further be traced back to the back-end servers. The states that, “The results of this study have prompted discussions, which are ongoing, of browser changes including allowing users to opt-out of search auto-complete on first startup plus several browsers specific changes.”
