According to a new report, Microsoft uses several ‘dark patterns’ to steer its users towards Edge.
A new report by the Browser Choice Alliance (BCA) criticises Microsoft for the way the company forces users towards its own Edge browser. The report, seen by Neowin, exposes ten so-called dark patterns. Through certain design choices, the tech giant makes it harder to install another browser. Even if you have set a different browser as your default.
Edge browser
Microsoft has a habit of pushing users towards its own software. This causes major irritation among users, but also among other browser makers. Under the Digital Markets Act, Microsoft was designated as a gatekeeper for Windows, but Edge did not meet the criteria. Opera therefore took the matter to court.
10 ‘dark patterns’
The BCA is an alliance of browser developers, including Google Chrome and Vivaldi. On behalf of the alliance, the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) investigated how Windows users are influenced.
The report highlights some ten dark patterns that Microsoft allegedly uses to keep people on Edge. According to the BCA, one of the most prominent examples is this: when someone uses Edge with Bing as the search engine to download another browser such as Vivaldi, they are flooded with messages in the search results claiming that Edge is better.
Besides promotional content, Microsoft also allegedly ensures that certain Windows features do not work optimally in other browsers. If you set a particular browser as your default, PDF files, for example, can still open in Edge. In the European Economic Area (EEA), this has since been changed.
In addition, certain Microsoft apps open links in Edge by default. Links in Outlook and Teams, for instance, ignore your default browser, although this blog post explains how to work around this.
“Vulnerable” users
According to Neowin, the report is highly critical of Microsoft and its impact on “vulnerable” users. It says that when a company uses several dark patterns at the same time, customers can no longer make informed choices.
“The effects of dark patterns that encourage users to stay with Edge while alternative browsers are harder to choose or maintain are stronger when users have no established preference, encounter the choice for the first time, or experience several reinforcing tactics at once,” BIT stresses.
Even though Edge was not designated as a gatekeeper under the DMA, Microsoft still has obligations regarding browser choice. Although not all dark patterns apply to the EEA, users are still influenced by them to some extent.