Microsoft assures that Chromium Edge protects users from malicious extensions

Last week we reported how Google is showing a warning to Microsoft Edge users and asking them to switch to Chrome if they want to “use extensions securely”. Google later said that the company is showing the message because Edge doesn’t support safe browsing so it won’t be able to detect and remove malicious extensions remotely.

Today, Microsoft Edge developer Eric Lawrence confirmed that Edge users don’t need to worry about Google’s warning. In a tweet, he confirmed that Edge queries extension stores for updates every 2-4 hours and queries threat updates every 30 minutes. He also shared a screenshot of Fiddler’s Web Debugger showing the process in action.

[Alt Text: Fiddler Web Debugger screenshot showing msedge.exe querying extension stores for updates every 2-4 hours and querying for updates to /extensionrevocation/v1/threatupdates every 30 minutes.]

— ? Eric Lawrence (@ericlaw) February 23, 2020

Google and Microsoft have never been on the same page and both the companies have used tactics to sway users in their favour. Both companies have a history of fighting over their own software. Microsoft has pushed users towards Edge on Windows 10 in the past and in a way Google seems to be returning the favour. That said, it’s pretty certain that Microsoft Edge is safe when it comes to using extensions and you don’t need to worry too much about the warning.

Via Techdows