Is Microsoft Edge spying on users? The browser sends data about the websites you visit to Bing

The Microsoft Edge browser appears to have privacy issues. In the Reddit community, users have made numerous posts about how they noticed that the latest version of the browser sends the full addresses of almost all web pages they visit to the Bing search engine API (bingapis.com), reports The Verge.

Enthusiasts have tried to figure out the purpose of this feature, but have been unable to because this use of the Bing API is not documented. A developer named Rafael Rivera was also interested in this issue. He conducted his own investigation and concluded that Edge's behavior may be due to a poorly implemented new feature.

“Microsoft Edge now has a creator follow feature that is enabled by default,” says Rivera in a conversation with The Verge. “It appears the intent was to notify Bing when you’re on certain pages, such as YouTube, The Verge, and Reddit. But it doesn’t appear to be working correctly, instead sending nearly every domain you visit to Bin,” he said.

The Verge notes that Microsoft began testing the feature last year, and it has become more widespread in recent months. It is supposed to help Edge users follow their favorite creators on YouTube and other platforms. It is also noted that if the user independently disables that subscription in the Edge settings, the browser will stop sending that information to Bing.

“We’re aware of reports, are investigating and will take appropriate action to address any issues,” said Caitlin Roulston, director of communications at Microsoft.

The Verge notes that until Microsoft completes its investigation and fixes the bug, Edge users are advised to disable the "Follow Authors" feature in the browser's settings.