The version 104 of Microsoft’s Edge browser is now available in the Stable channel. This is a pretty minor update that adds a new “Basic” setting for Edge’s enhanced security mode, as well as a new carrot to get Chrome users to switch to Microsoft’s browser.

In Microsoft Edge 104, the company added the option to import your Chrome data when you open Edge for the first time, even when Google Chrome isn’t installed on your device. This is done by logging in to your Google account during Edge’s First Run Experience.

The second notable change is related to Edge’s enhanced security mode, which runs unfamiliar sites without the just-in-time (JIT) compilation to reduce the attack surface. Enhanced security mode also provides additional protection on Windows PCs by enabling system-level features such as Hardware Enforced Stack Protection, Arbitrary Code Guard (ACG), and Control Flow Guard (CFG).

Edge’s Enhanced security mode isn’t enabled by default because it can break some sites. When enabled on Edge 104, it now uses a new “Basic” setting that will only apply security mitigation to the less visited sites, which should guarantee that most sites work as expected. The “Balance” and “Strict” are still available in settings, and you can also turn off security protections on sites you choose, or configure Edge to always use the “Strict” level of enhanced security when browsing in InPrivate.

Microsoft Edge has been released alongside Google Chrome 104, which brought some fixes for various security vulnerabilities, as well as Chrome OS 104. The latter finally brought a dark theme option to Chromebooks, similar to what macOS and Windows 10/11 already have.

Tagged with Microsoft Edge