Latest Edge update offers easier Chrome data import, new 'Basic' option for enhanced web security

Finally, Microsoft has released Edge browser version 104 in the Stable channel, and the rollout brings the general public two major features: better security and easier transfer of Chrome data to Edge.

Despite the recent news about the increased desktop market share of Microsoft Edge, it is undeniable that the browser is still far from catching up with Google Chrome. With this, Microsoft keeps introducing new Edge updates in hopes of luring users to its browser. One of those features is Microsoft Edge’s First Run Experience. What’s special about this new feature being introduced by Microsoft in Edge is that it will allow you to log in to your Google account without installing Google Chrome on your PC. This means you can migrate your Chrome data with less fuss and process in case you want to go full Edge.

When you launch Edge, this update will ask you whether you want to log into your Google account or not. Doing so will allow Edge to retrieve your Chrome browsing data synced to the cloud. On the other hand, if you want to turn off the feature, Microsoft said that you could simply disable it through the HideFirstRunExperience policy or the ‘DisabledAutoImport’ option in AutoImportAtFirstRun.

Another feature included in the Edge version 104 is the new default security option called “Basic Mode,” which will now be the default for the Enhance your security on the web setting. This will join Edge’s current Balanced and Strict level options by applying “added security protection to the less visited sites” while preserving a satisfying user experience when using popular websites.

“Basic mode is a static mode that only applies these security mitigations to less visited sites,” Microsoft explains. “This mode doesn’t take a user’s behavior into account and only enables the feature on less visited sites.”