Microsoft’s new advertising strategy probably backfired. A new pop-up is causing an uproar among Windows users because it can hardly be distinguished from malware.
In this image montage we have enlarged it slightly for visibility: This is what the message looks like in the Chrome browser – here in the English version. (Source: monticello/depositphotos.com / Reddit (TheDyslexicCow); Image montage: Netzwelt)
- Windows users encounter unusual pop-ups in the Google Chrome browser.
- They are supposed to come from Microsoft and make you change your default browser.
- Many users turn to Microsoft. The company gives the all-clear.
Have you recently used Google’s Chrome browser on a Windows PC? Then you may have come across those strange pop-up ads trying to get you to try Bing as your default search engine. Many users have already discovered it and are unsettled because the window that appears is very reminiscent of the displays typical of malware.
But don’t worry, because this is not a virus-infected ad, but a new advertising strategy from Microsoft, as the American technology website The Verge reports. However, if you click on the ad carelessly, it can still have undesirable consequences. As described, Bing will then be set as your default search engine for the Chrome browser. To undo this change, you have to fidget with the Windows browser settings.
Statement from Microsoft
Microsoft has already caused displeasure among Windows users with such bold advertisements in the past, but the new scam has a particularly undesirable side effect. As indicated at the beginning, many consider the pop-up advertisements to be malware, as shown by posts on Reddit. Microsoft has now clarified the matter and issued a statement when asked by The Verge:
This is a one-time notification that gives users the option to set Bing as their default search engine in Chrome. […] We value giving our customers a choice. It is therefore possible to reject the report.
Caitlin Roulston (Communications Manager at Microsoft)
If you make use of this option and decline the offer, the pop-up will disappear permanently. Normally it should no longer appear for Windows users after it has been displayed once, according to Microsoft.
Be careful with other pop-ups
However, if you encounter a pop-up that does not come from Microsoft, we advise you to be particularly careful. In our current fraud warnings, we inform you, among other things, about advertising scams that criminals use to smuggle viruses and malware onto your computer.
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