Is Microsoft's Edge Browser Importing Data from Google Chrome Without Permission?

Attention Windows users! If you are using the Windows operating system, be cautious. It appears that Microsoft’s Edge browser is actively importing tabs and other data from Google Chrome without your permission.

In addition to your favorite websites and saved passwords, the Edge browser settings on Windows machines hide more than meets the eye. This has been happening at least since mid-2022, enabling Edge to essentially import all browser data from Chrome every time the Microsoft browser is launched.

This behavior has sparked controversy, as it is seen as an infringement on user rights, which is characteristic of Microsoft. Furthermore, if users are logged into their Microsoft accounts, this data gets synced with the cloud. This is far from ideal if users wanted to keep their Chrome and Edge environments separate.

We have previously written about Microsoft’s appetite for data and the decreased privacy it entails.

Reports of issues and surprises related to Edge browser’s import feature have been emerging among Windows users who do not regularly use the program. Other sources have provided steps to deactivate this feature (e.g., opening edge://settings/profiles/importBrowsingData and ensuring it is disabled). However, reader responses to these articles mainly express concerns about the data being imported, rather than the settings being the problem.

The Verge’s Tom Warren addressed this issue earlier this week, reporting that after restarting his system, he noticed that Edge opened with the tabs from before the restart, even though he had not authorized or allowed data import from Chrome. He claims to have never changed the settings and had confirmed that the feature was disabled.

Browsing the internet reveals that this phenomenon is affecting many people, although it does not seem to be widespread.

Similar problems have been reported in several Microsoft support threads over the past few months. Even with the import feature disabled, Edge unexpectedly imports data from Chrome. Reddit also contains numerous posts reporting similar issues.

Responses from Microsoft employees and independent advisors suggest checking the ImportBrowsingData settings and manually adding registry keys to Group Policies to disable automatic import. However, all of these responses are the same, and a solution to disable this feature seems to be elusive.

Furthermore, the information about Chrome tabs being opened with Edge upon restart seems to be a new issue since the Windows 11 update KB5034204 released on January 23, 2022. While this feature had neglected privacy considerations in the past, this update seems to compel users to adhere to its rules.

Other users have also reported similar issues, and security researcher Zack Edwards points out the possibility of Microsoft providing some explanation for this. The installation screen for this update includes information that Edge “periodically retrieves data from other browsers available on your Windows device.”

While this can be perceived as a form of transparency, Microsoft does provide a brief disclaimer during the installation of the known update KB5034204.

In addition to the Edge issues, there seem to be numerous other problems with KB5034204, as seen in Reddit threads a few days later. Users report installation failures, startup issues, and other problems such as broken applications, file explorers, and taskbars. We reached out to Microsoft for further information on the broader issues with KB5034204 but received no response.

Without providing misleading information, it is recommended to refrain from installing the latest Windows 11 update or to wait until Microsoft releases a fixed version. Alternatively, at least wait until this issue is clarified. Who are we in the open web?