- Microsoft Edge sends every site you visit to Bing.
- The problem occurs in the latest version of the browser.
- The root of the issue is poor implementation of the “follow creators” feature.
- You can disable the “Show suggestions to follow creators in Microsoft Edge” feature to mitigate the issue.
Microsoft Edge reportedly has some sort of bug that sends the website links you visit to the Bing API service. According to a new report from The Verge, the web browser’s latest version sends requests to the “bingapis.com” website with the URL of virtually any page you load.
The privacy issue was first spotted on Reddit, where user hackermchackface noted that a simple request from the “bingapis” service includes a list of every site you load in the browser.
In another Reddit thread, the same user goes into more detail about the problem. This person claims that the issue started with the release of Microsoft Edge version 112.0.1722.34 and later.
The thread explains that in previous releases, the feature only sent a few URLs that were limited to some social media sites, such as YouTube and Pinterest. However, on version 112.0.1722.34, the behavior changed, including every site you load because the browser now executes a “GET” request that generates JSON code with many details, including “any links, logins, clicked or otherwise navigated to, not just URLs typed or copied into the navigation bar, as is the well-known behavior of other privacy-invading browser features.”
Edge now ships with the “Show suggestions to follow creators in Microsoft Edge” feature turned on by default on Windows 11, 10, macOS, Linux, and mobile. This is a feature that is meant to make it easier to follow content creators when you are on sites like YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. However, it seems like the company didn’t do a good job implementing it.
If you’re concerned about Bing knowing the sites you visit, it appears that if you disable the feature, the browser will stop leaking your URLs to the search engine. You can disable the “Show suggestions to follow creators in Microsoft Edge” feature from the edge://settings/privacy page.
Microsoft says that it is aware of the problem and it’s investigating to determine and resolve the issue. However, the company hasn’t yet issued an official explanation as to why the browser sends your sites to the Bing search engine. In the meantime, you can disable the feature to prevent Microsoft Edge from leaking your web history.
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 15 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 21 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].