I say the whole world must learn of our peaceful ways by force!
This famous line from Futurama perfectly sums up some of Microsoft"s attempts to make sure people do not use rival services. If you cannot make your users stick willingly, do it by force or other annoying tricks or dirty patterns. From injecting ads on competing websites to malware-like banners—Windows users have already seen plenty. Now, Microsoft has come up with another trick quite literally to fool inexperienced users into Bing.
Users noticed that an attempt to open Google using Bing results in the latter disguising itself as Google"s search engine with its centered art and a search bar. The page even scrolls itself down a bit to hide the typical Microsoft Bing header with its logo, the standard search bar, and tabs like Copilot, Images, Videos, Maps, etc.
The traditional search results are still there, but they are much lower your eyesight. Then, typing anything into the search bar results in the user searching with Bing.
Microsoft also tries to pull some heartstrings by stating that "every search brings you closer to a free donation for over 2 million nonprofits!" right below the search bar. This deliberately crafted behavior clearly preys on inexperienced or inattentive users who are accustomed to the Google Search home page (for many users, Edge is just a Chrome downloader, and Bing is a shortcut to Google). Now, with the media picking up the story, it will be interesting to see whether Microsoft will remove this new thing or not.
As a reminder, if you use Microsoft Edge, you can always switch to Google Search in the address bar by heading to Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Address bar and search > Search engine used in the address bar.