Microsoft Edge force-installs Google Docs Offline extension

[vtqhtr413]

Content source

https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-edge-force-installs-google-docs-offline-extension-without-permission/

Microsoft Edge users are reporting a somewhat head-scratching situation. The browser installs the Google Docs Offline extension (which allows creating and editing Google Docs without the internet) from the Chrome Web Store without permission or notifications.

According to several observations, the extension appears in different channels, not only Canary or Dev. I got it on my primary PC running stable Windows 11 and Edge and on a virtual machine with the latest Windows 11 Dev build and Edge Canary. Although the extension is turned off by default, Deskmodder reports Microsoft Edge on their machines prompted to "repair" Google Docs Offline and enabled it without permission.

Google Docs Offline is part of the Chrome browser, so one theory is that the extension made it to Microsoft Edge by a bug or mistake, however, the extension has a distinct "Installed by Microsoft Edge" badge indicating that the behavior is anything but unintentional. Also, an "i" button says Edge will turn on the extension to "optimize your experience." The story gets extra ironic considering that Microsoft Edge has built-in shortcuts and sidebar buttons for Office Online.

 

[Ink]

Wasn’t Edge was built on top of Chromium, not Chrome?

 

[Sandbox Breaker]

This is wierd. I can't wait for the Office 365 support for chrome is the MS announced.

 

[vtqhtr413]

Wasn’t Edge was built on top of Chromium, not Chrome?

They both are Ink, the article is a bit confusing or "head scratching" as it states but the very last sentence leads me to agree with the bug theory.

"The story gets extra ironic considering that Microsoft Edge has built-in shortcuts and sidebar buttons for Office Online."

Also, while searching for a previous post, I noticed @nasdaq has delt with it on a couple of occasions, so it's been in the mix for a while.

Cannot remove Google Docs extension on Google Chrome

Hello, An extension called 'Google Docs' automatically installs itself every time I open a new Google window. It does not appear when I open an incognito window. This extension redirects me from Google to Microsoft Bing. It does not allow me to click on 'Manage extensions,' 'Reset and clean up,'...

malwaretips.com

Can't remove google docs extension

Hello, in my pc one extension called Google docs is automatically installed . But i never installed that. If i remove the extension it automatically reinstalled. While the extension is installed it automatically redirected to privatesearch.org .

malwaretips.com

 

[Gandalf_The_Grey]

Many Microsoft Edge users are complaining that the web browser is installing Google’s official “Google Docs Offline” extension automatically from Chrome Web Store without asking for their permission. Some people are thinking that it might be a bug which is causing Microsoft Edge to install the extension on users devices as the extension is generally found on Google Chrome web browser. But that’s not true.

It’s a feature by design introduced in Microsoft Edge version 114.0.1823.58 released on June 22, 2023. If you check the changelog of Microsoft Edge web browser available at official Microsoft Edge Stable channel release notes website, you’ll find following information given under version 114.0.1823.58:

Google Docs Offline extension for Microsoft Edge. Google Docs Offline is an extension provided by Google to allow users to work on Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drive without internet access. This extension also provides advanced cut, copy, and paste functionalities across Google Editors. The Google Docs Offline extension will be pre-installed and will be disabled by default for Microsoft Edge users. When a user navigates to Google Docs, the extension will be auto-enabled. Administrators can use the ExtensionSettings and ExtensionInstallBlocklist policies to block the auto-installation of the Google Docs Offline extension. Note: This feature is a controlled feature rollout. If you don’t see this feature, check back as we continue our rollout.

The new feature was not listed on the changelog page when the version 114.0.1823.58 was released on June 22, 2023. Microsoft added the information later to make it clear that the Google Docs Offline extension is being automatically installed on all Microsoft Edge installations by Microsoft. The feature is being rolled out in phases using controlled rollout mechanism.

Fortunately, Microsoft allows users to easily delete or remove the Google Docs Offline extension from Microsoft Edge browser. You can open Extensions page using edge://extensions/ URL and click on the “Remove” button given below the Google Docs Offline extension to get rid of the forced extension from your web browser.

https://www.askvg.com/microsoft-edge-is-installing-google-docs-offline-extension-automatically-here-is-why/