Microsoft announced that the pop-up display of ``Switch the default search engine in Chrome to Microsoft Bing'' was ``unintentional and has been temporarily suspended.''



Microsoft's Windows has often encouraged

people to migrate from third-party software and services to Microsoft's products. Regarding pop-ups with content such as 'Switch the default search engine in Chrome to Microsoft Bing,' which has been reported one after another since around August 2023, Microsoft said, 'These displays are unintended behavior, and appropriate measures will be taken. We have suspended this notification until then.'

Microsoft is using malware-like pop-ups in Windows 11 to get people to ditch Google - The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2023/8/30/23851902/microsoft-bing-popups-windows-11-malware



Microsoft-signed “BGAUpsell.exe” pushes Bing on Windows and Chrome users | Ars Technica

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/08/microsoft-rolls-out-then-pauses-pop-up-that-asked-chrome-users-to-switch-to-bing/



Below is a pop-up that Microsoft has displayed on the user's desktop since around August 2023.



The pop-up says, ``Switch your default search engine in Chrome to Microsoft Bing.'' Microsoft says that the benefits of switching from Chrome to Bing include ``earning Microsoft Rewards points when searching'' and ``a new search engine powered by AI.'' It emphasizes three points: 'You can use the new Bing ' and 'You can improve your search experience by installing Bing Service.'

Windows automatically displays a pop-up saying ``Switch the default search engine in Chrome to Microsoft Bing.'' recommending switching to Bing as the search engine - GIGAZINE



Foreign media outlet The Verge reported that the pop-up in question is different from notifications from Bing, OneDrive, Microsoft 365, etc. that are normally displayed in the notification center, and is called ``BGAUpsell.exe'' stored in ``c:\windows\temp\mubstemp.'' It is reported to be launched by its own executable, digitally signed by Microsoft.




Several users have complained about this pop-up. According to The Verge, the pop-up was not only displayed on the desktop, but also while playing the game.



'Microsoft is aware of reports of these pop-ups. We are investigating and taking appropriate action to address this unintended behavior,' Caitlin Rolston, Microsoft communications director, told The Verge. We have temporarily disabled this pop-up until we can take action.'

When migrating from Microsoft software or services to third-party services such as Google Chrome or FireFox, there have been frequent reports of pop-ups prompting users to continue using the service, or pop-ups prompting users to switch to Microsoft products.

Microsoft displays a warning when installing Firefox, chat AI 'Rinna' also joins Edge retention strategy - GIGAZINE



Tom Warren of The Verge points out, ``Microsoft should understand that users do not want to see advertisements such as this pop-up on Windows, which is supposed to be paid software.'' He added, ``Windows is an important tool for many users, so it shouldn't function like cheap software that displays ads over and over again.''

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in Software, Posted by log1r_ut