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Microsoft Windows service promotion scrutiny

Updated 5 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

What changed

2026-08-31 22:28 UTC → 2026-09-01 20:06 UTC · added ~~removed~~

Microsoft has intensified efforts to promote Bing and Edge through technical tools and incentive programs. The company has tested a Windows application, ‘Microsoft Recommended Search Settings’ (distributed as ‘MicrosoftSettings.exe’), which uses a WinUI interface to install extensions like ‘Microsoft Bing Homepage & Search’ across browsers including Edge, Firefox, Chrome, and Brave. In Chrome, this can trigger competitive prompts: when the browser asks to ‘Change back to Google Search?’, the Microsoft extension may respond with ‘Wait, don’t change it back!’, warning that reverting will disable features like daily wallpapers. To further drive adoption, Microsoft is refreshing its Edge referral program, offering 500 Microsoft Rewards points per successful referral in the United States, while users in Italy earn points based on Bing searches. These points are redeemable for services such as Xbox and the Microsoft Store. In response to scrutiny, Microsoft clarified that the search settings application is entirely optional and requires explicit user consent. Following this, Microsoft released optional update KB5120998 for Windows 11 (versions 24H2 and 25H2), which introduces a redesigned search experience to reduce web-based clutter. New toggles under Settings > Privacy & Security > Search allow users to disable Bing web results and Microsoft Store suggestions, shifting the function to a local-first system that prioritizes recent searches and local files. ~~While the update~~ This update, KB5120998, aims to provide a cleaner interface by removing MSN feeds and trending topics, ~~it has been linked to technical issues.~~ while also offering taskbar customization and Start menu scaling options. Because Microsoft ~~confirmed~~ utilizes a ~~bug where the update~~ Controlled Feature Rollout, these changes may ~~cause custom mouse cursor settings to revert to default styles, and~~ not appear immediately for all users, though some ~~users~~ have ~~reported desktop wallpapers resetting~~ used the open-source tool ViVeTool to ~~black backgrounds.~~ attempt to force the features.

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