Microsoft is known for its aggressive marketing tactics, and the latest move by the tech giant to lure Chrome users to Bing is no exception. The company has been using various methods to persuade users of Windows 10 and 11 who use Google Chrome as their default browser to switch to Bing as their default search engine: Microsoft is desperately trying to find a strategy to increase its market share in the search engine market.
One such method is through specially designed pop-up windows that appear on the screen, even when users are running other applications in full-screen mode. These pop-ups, which have been reported by The Verge, are particularly disturbing because they overlay other locally running applications and even games running in full-screen mode. According to the report, the message does not come as an ordinary system notification but is actually an executable file digitally signed by Microsoft.
The fact that Microsoft regularly reminds Windows users to use its own web browser Edge and sometimes even forces them to use it is nothing new, as Google also uses similar tactics to persuade users of other web browsers to switch to Chrome. A Microsoft spokeswoman told The Verge that the notification's behavior was "unintentional" and that the company has "paused" the pop-up notifications for further investigation.