We’ve had enough.
We’re not getting conspiratorial here—this seems like a bug.
We believe it’s a bug.
That’s the problem.
The bug is part of a new feature in Edge that lets you follow “creators.”
It’s enabled by default.
It seems like the feature was intended to send web page addresses only from certain domains, like YouTube.
But it’s not working as designed.
Instead, it’s leaking much more of your browsing traffic than intended—nearly everything!
Microsoft will probably fix it soon.
Privacy and security are critical for browsers.
In2021, we wrote that Microsoft wasmaking it hard to recommend Edge.
That’s only gotten worse.
In 2022, we wrote thatEdge was now more bloated than Google Chrome.
It’s not a clean web client that just gets out of your way anymore.
So if it’s time to stop using Edge, what should you use instead?
More importantly, Google has had a lot more restraint when it comes to cluttering up Chrome’s interface.
Here at How-To Geek, Tim Brookes just wrote a compelling argument onwhy you should stop using Google Chrome.
If you’re concerned about privacy issues around Google, it clearly isn’t the best pick.
Mozilla Firefoxis still out there, though.
Mozilla seems to have course-corrected.
We hope Microsoft does the same thing one day.
There are other browsers, of course.
Brave has also had its own scandals—Brave was once caught rewriting affiliate linksbut relented after criticism.
I’m Saying Goodbye to Edge, Too
This article is actually personal to me.
I’m writing this article in Microsoft Edge right now.
I’ll give Mozilla Firefox a go as my main internet tool later today.
You were solid and reliable for a while.
But I’ve given you enough second chances.
Like Internet Explorer before it, it’s built into Windows.
The best it’s possible for you to do is close Edge and just not use it.
