New Update Microsoft Edge browser now comes with it’s own VPN

Pixelman

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Microsoft has followed a small group of its competitors in building a VPN service directly into its own browser. The VPN feature, known as “Microsoft Edge Secure Network,” has rolled out to a limited selection of users in the latest Edge Canary version.

While Microsoft has yet to announce its launch, early testers have already got the first glimpse of what the new privacy tool looks like and how it is designed to work. In Canary, the new VPN feature could be found under Settings > Privacy, search and services.

 

Gangelo

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Is it just me or does every time that MS adds some 'feature' to Edge seem like useless junk?
If you want to use a VPN get something proper.
Chrome gets all the hate due to MV3, Google ownership and such, but it's simplicity is it's power.
 

Gandalf_The_Grey

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Back in April this year, traces of an integrated VPN (Virtual Private Network) dubbed "Secure Network" were spotted in Microsoft Edge, which is being powered by Cloudflare. A month later, the Redmond company officially made its announcement adding some more details about the new feature. In September, the Microsoft Edge Secure Network Preview service finally went live in the Canary channel. However, it has been a controlled rollout, so not everyone is being offered the feature, but those that were offered it were able to enjoy 1GB of free VPN data.

Fast forward to today, and the latest version of Edge Canary, v110.0.1563.0, has a major overhaul as the previous 1GB cap in the Edge Secure Network feature has now been removed and has been raised to offer 15 times more free data at 15GB. Reddit user and Edge enthusiast Leopeva64-2 noticed this change in the latest release, and it is indeed a big one.

To test Secure Network, download Microsoft Edge Canary from the official website and sign in with your Microsoft Account (MSA). Note that using Secure Network during the preview period requires the MSA in order for keeping track of the data usage. It can be enabled inside the "Privacy, search, and services" menu in Settings.

Of course, this is still a preview feature in testing, so it is anyones guess whether it will reach the final Stable Channel build. And if it does, Edge could become an enticing browser choice for those that enjoy browsing anonymously via VPN, but don't want to pay for it.
 

silversurfer

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Microsoft Secure Network reportedly rolling out in Microsoft Edge Stable​

A report by Dr.Windows suggests that Microsoft has started to roll out Microsoft Secure Network to select stable users of the company's Edge web browser. He bases this on a report by a German user who noticed that Secure Network was available in Edge Stable. The scope of the rollout is unknown at this point.

Microsoft Edge users may select Menu and check for the Secure Network entry in the menu that opens to find out if the feature is available on their devices.

microsoft secure network settings
 

Imranmt

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  • Microsoft will offer 5 GB of free data on Edge's built-in VPN.
  • The Redmond tech giant offered 15 GB of free data in the past, but it didn't go well.
  • While it might seem like a step back, the 5 GB is permanent.
It seems that Edge’s built-in VPN could give 5 GB of free data in the future, according to this Windows enthusiast. A while ago, Microsoft offered 15 GB of data through Edge’s VPN. Unfortunately, it turned out to be temporary and part of a trial period.

However, this time the Redmond tech giant is giving 5 GB of free data that might be permanent. @Leopeva64 spotted it on the Settings page in Edge Canary, where the data is clearly mentioned as being free.

5 GB of free data seems like a substantial amount enough for Microsoft to keep a swift balance between offering free resources and managing the costs of it. Even more, Edge’s VPN can deliver a good browsing experience, while making sure the services are sustainable.

Microsoft has also removed the option to enable the VPN on all sites, and @Leopeva64 agrees this means the 5GB of free data will be permanent.

Edge’s built-in VPN. Is it worth it?​

You might ask yourself, if you should use Edge’s built-in VPN, and the answer is yes. You should.

Edge’s VPN encrypts your internet traffic, so it shields you from unwanted attention, and threats. For example, every time you connect your device to a public Wi-Fi network, you are very vulnerable to attacks. The VPN protects you from that.

Even more, with Edge’s built-in VPN, you can bypass region-restricted content and websites. It also prevents advertisers from tracking your activity. And the best thing is that this VPN comes as a built-in part, so it’s free.

Microsoft announced it a while ago, and it allowed Edge insiders to test up to 15GB of free monthly traffic. However, the limit was set to 1GB once the feature was available to all users.

With that being said, 5 GB is more than reasonable for free data, and this way Edge’s built-in VPN will take care of the users’ experience without compromising security. It’s a great deal.
Source: You might get 5 GB of free data from Edge's built-in VPN
 

Zero Knowledge

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Not worth for educated users on the Vpn scene. There are much better option in the market. But for ordinary people and users it might be useful. Grandma or Grandpa or Mum or Dad might find it useful when travelling or on the road or when working away from home and want to access geo-restricted content or use public Wi-Fi.
 

Zero Knowledge

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Will Edge keep a record of my searches totally private, or are they going to be logged somehow or somewhere?
LOL it's MS so they will collect, sell and share user data just like Google. Anyway, to monetarize data is the way of such companies. It's MS one of the biggest companies in the world who shove ads down your throat on the start menu and collect so much telemetry data they probably need 100 football fields of data centres to store the data for later use. I imagine like Google the authorities can request and receive search results from Bing and data from the Vpn which would have connected I.P address, location and search details on what you searched for and what links you clicked on and in the Vpn case data on what you used internet/service/software wise.

Good for educated or privacy users? No! But for older parents, professional or people on the road MS and Google are viable to use their Vpn service.
 

Jonny Quest

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Still, a wonderful post on your part, as you filled in the gap for those whose first knee-jerk response is, "oh, that's fantastic, free VPN from Edge/Microsoft", without considering what they would be giving up privacy-wise compared to a true VPN provider like Mullvad etc.
 

Azure

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Windscribe already offers 10GB for free. And you can even extend that more with coupon codes.

It’s also a desktop application so it works in more than just the browser.

So not much of a reason to use Edge’s, at least from what I understand so far.
 

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