Microsoft hijacks Google's Chrome download page to beg you not to ditch Edge
- Reference: 1677140887
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/02/23/microsoft_edge_banner_chrome/
- Source link:
As noted this week by [1]Neowin , an attempt to download and install Chrome Canary using Edge Canary – both experimental browser builds – led to the presentation in the Edge browser window of a banner graphic celebrating the merits of Edge.
[2]
Screenshot of Edge injecting an anti-Chrome banner ad into Google.com's Chrome download page ... Source: [3]Chris Frantz
"Microsoft Edge runs on the same technology as Chrome, with the added trust of Microsoft," the banner proclaims atop a button labeled "Browse securely now."
This was on a Google web page, google.com/chrome/canary/thank-you.html , and it's not clear how this ad surfaced. Edge appears to display the banner by itself when the user surfs to the Chrome download page on Google.com, which is just a little bit aggressive.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request to explain the promotion and the mechanics behind it.
[4]
The ad does not appear to have been delivered through normal ad servers based on its page placement. There's debate among those discussing the banner online whether the ad consists of code injected by Edge into Google's webpage, which would make it detectable and removable as part of the Document Object Model.
[5]
[6]
It has also been suggested that the ad may come from Edge as an interface element that's stacked atop the rendered web page. We believe this is the case.
An individual familiar with browser development confirmed to The Register that he could reproduce the ad, which was said to be written in HTML but wasn't placed "in" the page. He described the ad as its own browser window that, surprisingly, was viewable with Edge's "Inspect" option for viewing source code.
[7]
Our source speculated the ad was implemented in a way that pushes down the "Content area" – the space where loaded web pages get rendered – to make space for a second rendering area that holds the ad.
The main content area and the ad content area do not interact with each other – they exist in separate worlds, so to speak. But the presence of the ad content area can be inferred by checking the main window's innerHeight and outerHeight parameters.
Given two browser windows, one with the ad and one without, the main window with the ad will have an innerHeight value that's less than a similarly sized window without the ad. The difference in the two measurements should correspond to the height of the ad content area.
[8]
Similar behavior can be found when visiting the Chrome Web Store using Microsoft Edge on macOS: the Chrome Web Store page is topped by an Edge banner that states, "Now you can add extensions from the Chrome Web Store to Microsoft Edge," followed by a boxed button that says, "Allow extensions from other stores."
The button produces a popup dialog box requesting permission to allow browser extensions from other stores, specifically the Microsoft Edge add-ons site.
[9]
Screenshot of the Chrome Web Store with an Edge ad banner ... Click to enlarge
Crucially, this banner does not appear to be part of the Chrome Web Store page. It does not show up in the Chrome Web Store HTML code and, unlike the Chrome page ad, it cannot be inspected using Edge's developer tools. Similarly, the popup dialog box cannot be inspected. But the Chrome Web Store banner measures 45 pixels high based on a comparison of innerHeight parameters.
Among those who concern themselves with the nuances of browser behavior, it's argued that blurring the boundaries between what the browser presents and what the website presents is both [10]confusing and a potential security risk .
As of Wednesday, Edge's self-promotion on the Chrome download page became more scarce and the ad now is said to appear only when trying to download Chrome using Edge Beta. Other Edge release channels Canary, Dev, and Stable reportedly no longer display the promotion.
[11]Microsoft injects AI search into Bing, Edge, Skype apps
[12]Rivals aren't convinced by Microsoft's one-click default browser change
[13]Microsoft tightens Edge security for less visited websites
[14]Microsoft switches Edge's PDF reader to pay-to-play Adobe Acrobat
Companies commonly pitch their own products on their own websites. And they often place ads on search results pages when people search for competitors' products. For example, entering the keywords "download Chrome" in macOS Edge, using Bing as the default search engine, presently produces a "Promoted by Microsoft" ad for Edge atop the Bing search results list. And searching "download Firefox" via Bing will lead to the same ad. But these ads exist within the context of the search result page.
Microsoft earlier this month introduced [15]a new version of Bing that's paired with AI chatbot ChatGPT. The AI flavoring has also shown up in its Edge browser. Microsoft executives have made clear that they see AI service integration as a way to differentiate company products and to win market share from Google Search and Google Chrome.
Google's market dominance in search and browsers has for years been the subject of [16]antitrust inquiries . These investigations and lawsuits, together with the implementation of the European Digital Markets Act, may finally open the door to Bing and Edge.
Microsoft has quite a bit of headroom for its search service and browser: Bing had about 3.03 percent of the global search market and Edge had about 4.6 percent of the global browser market, according to [17]StatCounter . Now it just has to reconcile "the added trust of Microsoft" with its ad strategy. ®
Get our [18]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-is-now-injecting-full-size-ads-on-chrome-website-to-make-you-stay-on-edge/
[2] https://regmedia.co.uk/2023/02/23/screenshot_edge_chrome.jpg
[3] https://twitter.com/frantzfries/status/1628178202395873286
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/applications&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Y-dHTjPV9eEhUJyo-PkDKQAAABc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/applications&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y-dHTjPV9eEhUJyo-PkDKQAAABc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/applications&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y-dHTjPV9eEhUJyo-PkDKQAAABc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/applications&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y-dHTjPV9eEhUJyo-PkDKQAAABc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/applications&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y-dHTjPV9eEhUJyo-PkDKQAAABc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[9] https://regmedia.co.uk/2023/02/23/cws_edge.jpg
[10] https://emilymstark.com/2022/12/18/death-to-the-line-of-death.html
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/22/microsoft_ai_bing/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2022/04/07/browser_default/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2022/08/08/microsoft_edge_security_browsing/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/10/microsoft_edge_pdf_acrobat/
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/07/microsoft_bing_ai/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/17/google_apple_chrome_ios_revenue/
[17] https://gs.statcounter.com/
[18] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: This isn't that new
They also pop up a banner when you try and change the default browser away from Edge as well.
Every time someone tells me their solution is the most secure, most trustworthy, whatever, that's fine. When they start pulling stunts like that, it makes me very much less inclined to trust them.
Re: This isn't that new
Hijacking a rival's web page to say " There's no need to download a new web browser " demonstrates *exactly* why you need to download a new web browser.
(Albeit I wouldn't trust Chrome as far as I could throw it either, and would rather use Firefox, but that's beside the point here).
Re: This isn't that new
Yep, but that's on Bing, their own site. This is ostensibly on someone else's web site - it's annoying, it's creepy, and - per the article - it's potentially the start of a slippery slope in terms of what users come to expect of a browser so could be a behavioural security issue.
Being quite honest, Microsoft's tricks to prevent me using the browser and PDF app of my choice only make me more determined. Just how often do they expect me to believe that some weird thing has happened that's meant both have had to be reset to Edge?
Never really gave it a thought.
It's just become part of the process of installing Chrome as the very first thing I do after installing Windows. Much like checking the "Accept" box to install something.
It's all a bit needy isn't it. Not a great look for what used to be a behemoth
Re: Never really gave it a thought.
I agree. It all smells a bit desperate.
Re: Never really gave it a thought.
installing Chrome as the very first thing I do after installing Windows
This is where Microsoft are going wrong, they should put up a banner asking you to install Firefox.
Re: Never really gave it a thought.
You install Chrome?
That's like saying I don't want to eat horseshit, I much prefer cowshit.
Re: You install Chrome?
Yes. Because it's what 90% of my users are familiar with And what 90% of their websites integrate with.
I'm an IT manager, not a evangelist.
If it makes you any happier I have vetoed Win11 and will be switching people to a Linux desktop (that runs Chrome) for all but the standalone MS Office users as the years roll by.
Cease and desist
There's no doubt that most courts would consider this "hijacking" of the web page. Google should, if it hasn't already, apply for a cease and desist order. Potential civil suits over the intervention are also possible.
Re: Cease and desist
I was thinking the same, but mostly because I would love to see two privacy offenders go at each other's throat.
The long and the short of this is that:
a) Microsoft is watching you and
b) they don't have any problem subverting the information you receive online for their own purposes which ought to be a wake up call, if only because it demonstrates just how much control they have over what is supposed to be your machine.
What's next? Replace images, ads and even maybe news articles that are negative (basically being true) about Microsoft? Censor email? Maybe that's why they invested in ChatGPT?
Re: Cease and desist
This behaviour 20 years ago wouldn't have been tolerated, MS and Google need to up the ante and start playing properly dirty instead of all this tipsy-toeing around. Each one putting "our results are better and return this" on each other's search pages and stuff. Make each others platform's unusable. Not so their behaviour gets to them taken to court, rather to make people see what's more-or-less already happening now and get them to look for alternatives.
Re: Cease and desist
Many of the post-Ballmer Windows decisions smack of hubris, so perhaps it is only a matter of time. Some of my non-IT acquaintances complain of how unusable modern desktops and the web have become. They just can't think of any viable alternative, and for them neither can I. Apple? Too dear. Chromebooks? You're having a laugh. Linux? Too complicated, unless I volunteer to become everyone's sysadmin in residence.
Would like to see alternatives come forward but I can't see any on the horizon. Maybe we need the old order to fall before they will come.
Re: Cease and desist
MS has been like this since the mid-2010s when they were using dirty tricks to pretty much force-upgrade Windows 7 and 8 users to Windows 10 against their explicitly-stated wishes.
Remember when- amongst countless other things- they changed the widely-accepted behaviour of the dialog box "close" button from "implicit cancel" to "implicit accept"? Pretty much the definition of "dark patterns" right there.
Remember when they effectively hijacked the Windows upgrade system and the implicit trust it replied upon to do this?
When even dull, corporate-friendly IT websites compare your upgrade software and techniques to malware (as one did at the time), it's pretty safe to say that's not hyperbole.
Re: Cease and desist
I can see that backfiring spectacularly and destroying ad blockers. Sure, they won't be able to get them all but look at what happened to Vanced and the lack of a decent replacement.
"Microsoft Edge runs on the same technology as Chrome, with the added trust of Microsoft," the banner proclaims atop a button labeled "Browse securely now."
What an oxymoron to place a secretly inserted ad in the browser claiming to be more private than a rivals equally privacy invasive software.
Whatever happened to the broswer choice window that MS had to implement in the EU, where it would randomly list several browser? Was it only required for older Windows versions?
To me the worrying thing is ...
... exactly how much each company wants you to use their own browser.
Re: To me the worrying thing is ...
A web browser has access to a lot of information about their customers. Powerful product promotion possibilities.
I'm safer still!
Vivaldi on Fedora, FTW!
Pot, kettle...
Yes, it's somewhat underhand, but how is this any different to when Google first launched Chrome and plastered "Download Chrome for faster/more secure browsing!" calls-to-action over their search results page?
Quite honestly, I'm surprised that Microsoft haven't tried this sooner.
Re: Pot, kettle...
How is it different? Really? Google is THEIR search results page that THEY code and host. They can do what the hell they like with it, just like Microsoft can do what the hell they like with Bing for what it's worth. This is Microsoft ostensibly placing code on Google's page and that is wrong. That's what's different.
CONNECTED SERVICES AND TELEMETRY
"The trust of Microsoft"
Thanks, Redmond. I needed a laugh this morning.
Wait til you use Edge with new Bing!!!! AI
"so you're trying to download Chrome. What are you some type of [ethnic slur]? Well I have your IP address so I know where you are and will order a hit on your family because your a google loving [ethnic slur] and should be put into a death camp"
Either that or it'll claim chrome/google never existed and was just 'fake news'....
Fight!
Go on Google, change your web search so that anyone who searches for anything Microsoft related gets an animated gif of someone angry shaking their fist at a screen and saying "Windows update has bricked my computer again!". Searches for Azure can take them to Google Cloud. When MS complain you can reply "you started it!". Huge entertainment guaranteed.
Damned if you do...
Annoyingly, even if you stick with Edge (which I've chosen to do on some less tech-savvy friend's PCs to keep things simple) Microsoft *still* won't leave you alone since it'll frequently badger them to reset to Edge defaults (i.e. Bing instead of Google which they requested) - MS really should be applauded for making Edge the worst of all options even though there's nothing terribly wrong with the browser itself.
This isn't that new
"There's no need to download a new web browser" says Bing when you search for "chrome" from the Edge browser. Microsoft has been desperate to keep people on Edge on newly installed Windows instances for quite a while now.