Microsoft Edge takes top spot over Chrome and Firefox in new security report

According to a new browser security report, Microsoft Edge is more effective than both Chrome and Firefox at protecting users from some malicious threats. The report, which comes from NSS Labs (via Betanews), seeks to compare the three major browsers and their effectiveness at countering socially engineered malware (SEM) and phishing attacks.

According to the results presented in the report, Microsoft Edge was the most successful, catching 91.4% of phishing URLs and blocking 99% of SEM samples. Chrome followed up with 82.4% and 85.8%, respectively. Meanwhile, Firefox managed to catch 81.4% of phishing URLs and 78.3 of SEM samples. Given that this is the first time Edge was a part of this monthly test, those are some pretty impressive results.

For those curious, the testing took place over the course of September and October, and included Microsoft Edge version 38.14393.0.0. As for the other browsers, the Chrome version used was 53.0.2785, while the version of Firefox tested was 48.0.2. If you're interested, you can download NSS Labs' full report for more.

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl.

76 Comments

Why anyone would willingly give over their info by using Chrome is beyond me. Edge, Opera, or Firefox any day of the week...
Because when you have an Android device that seamlessly syncs your browsing history, bookmarks, passwords, and other things across platforms it's very convenient. I don't have a Windows Mobile device, but I would imagine Edge on the desktop as well as on mobile probably does the same thing that Chrome does: stores your data for convenience and synchronization.
I think he's inferring how Google makes money by selling user data and browser habits. Collecting/storing data is one thing, what the company uses it for is another.
What does Microsoft do with all the data they collect? You know full well Google doesn't share or sell your data with third parties. Targeting of ads is much different. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2016/08/windows-10-microsoft-blatantly-dis...
Oh Bleached you are so nieve. Google makes its money on selling YOU... everything about you. All of your browsing history all of your data stored on thier servers. That's why all thier junk is free, from Google Earth on down to Google Docs. What Microsoft does is different. But, wait, you read something on the Internet that tells you different... hum likely by the same good folks who said blonds are becoming extinct... yes believe all that you read... Google is not evil at all... join big brother...
It really bothers you that Microsoft is one of the worst privacy offenders these days. Of course Google uses your data to target ads if you let them, they are very open about what they do. There is no mystery there. Microsoft on the other hand...
Well, they aren't. Their "privacy offending" (which is made up) is opt-in. You can't get away from Google though. They've even broken their own privacy terms before, and you believe in them haha. So naive.
https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/ https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/privacystatement You can read the privacy policies yourself. Microsoft says "We also share data with Microsoft-controlled affiliates and subsidiaries; with vendors working on our behalf;" while Google says "We may share non-personally identifiable information publicly and with our partners – like publishers, advertisers or connected sites. For example, we may share information publicly to show trends about the general use of our services." Does one sound better than the other? Reading their privacy policies, it sounds like they both do the same thing. It isn't Microsoft or Google I would be afraid of. The Comcasts and Verizons of the world see EVERYTHING you do and they are much less inclined to keep your data safe.
Again, their policies have changed as of 11 days ago. Since they own DoubleClick, they decided to go against their own promises to keep data anonymous. Users can now be tracked across the web via DoubleClick. Source: https://www.engadget.com/2016/10/21/googles-redefined-privacy-policy-let... If this wasn't bad enough, battery level APIs in Chrome allow websites to view computer battery life, intended to allow websites to present less battery intensive versions of websites when your battery is low. Instead, people wrote scripts that allow the battery level to act as a tracker, so you can be identified even if you clear history/cookies and are using a VPN. This method of guessing and relinking battery life to a user is called "Respawning" and it's been a security issue for years since implementation. Firefox recently deleted these APIs. Opera, Chrome, and Safari are either still dangerous or at risk. Source: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/nov/01/firefox-disable-batte...
Shut up.
I'm listening. What does Microsoft do? (This will be good)
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2016/08/windows-10-microsoft-blatantly-dis... https://www.cnil.fr/en/windows-10-cnil-publicly-serves-formal-notice-mic...
I also want to know..
https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/privacystatement Read their privacy policy yourself. It tells you exactly what they do. Spoiler, they do exactly the same thing Google does. Collect your information in order to personalize services and target ads.
That not offend that telling you what they take and what they do with your data. I though you want to say they sold or stole your data.
You're so naïve it's almost cute mate.
We know very well google sells your data to anyone willing to pay enough. It has been demonstrated multiple times, you can check for yourself, you probably already did and then proceeded to convince yourself that it's a good thing and it's for your own good
Who has Google sold data to? Can you backup that claim?
Google's privacy statement says, in plain terms "We will share your information with anyone we choose, including partners, vendors and our clientelle, who pay for that data." Microsoft's privacy statement, translated to normal talk is "We will share data with people who work for vendors on our behalf, who will use it within our terms." Once Google shares aggregate data with their clients, it's out of their control. MSFT on the other hand shares with vendors, so they still control how the data is used, stored and accessed. Are either of these anything to worry about? No, not really. This is aggregate data we're talking about, neither MSFT nor Google have direct access to your personal search history, browsing history, or what you store in cloud storage or on your PC. So to those paranoid people who are worried that someone's going to find out you're into furries, your fears are unfounded.
Dude, this was literally covered this less than two weeks ago. Google IS actually merging its data into one cohesive space, against consumer interests. https://www.engadget.com/2016/10/21/googles-redefined-privacy-policy-let...
Wow Daniel, I think you know Google does not sell your data and I believe most users does but since their hatred towards google is more ....so they tend to spread lies. This an article from sister website http://www.androidcentral.com/ask-ac-does-google-sell-your-data but they thought otherwsie, So either their sister website moderators are spreading lies or WC users. Can you please answer this. Please do not make WC users more delusional. and if anyone think Google sell your data without your permission and file a law suit. You guys will make a lot money.
Yeah, Google is now a no profit company, the live selling glasses. Pfff...
One question - so who is tellng the truth, their sister website or WC users ?
Daniel while Edge is at the top now, Microsoft seems to be pushing users away by letting users install the rewards extension on edge only to realize that they lose the option to browse with their phone and also getting less daily points with Bing rewards -now Microsoft rewards:(
Yeah, we get all that plus the added performance, battery efficiency, security and overall experience.
There is nothing wrong with collecting and storing user data for that user's exclusive use. Collecting and storing user data to sell to the highest bidder is something completely different. The funny thing is, many people having a fit about Microsoft collecting and storing their data so that user can access it, but have absolutely no problem with Google collecting, storing, and selling user data. This has been happening for years. The example I like to talk about is how people used to (WinXP days) get upset because Microsoft would look at your hardware and send a list of what was used to download drivers for that hardware. People had a fit, complaining that Microsoft was violating their privacy, looking at what hardware they had installed, etc. So Microsoft switched to downloading a huge (in late 1990s standards) file that contained the version number of all hardware drivers. People yelled that Microsoft was eating up their bandwidth. No matter what happens people are angry with Microsoft. Actually, people are not, it is the people who don't like Microsoft, your Apple, Google, Sony, etc. users. Meanwhile Google hands out information to whomever wants to pay (or for free to groups that they are sympathetic to) and those same people complaining about Microsoft are perfectly fine with what Google is doing.
Yeah its really strange.. They make the argument that what they do on their phone is completely different from how they use their desktops... Except that those same people have a Chromecast, Chromebook, and Android tablet as well and sat that they use their smartphone for work, personal and play negating their own argument.
Kinda weird though people fine with Google Assistant collecting data but try like crazy to disable Cortana.
Still u could use firefox on all the android devices... Without given google all ur data. When i used android this was what i did. Besides that: My bookmarks were different for a good reason: On desktop those included long text, informations around programming and stuff like that. Using them on a smartphone would be bogus. And like that they needed to be different for me or it would have been very confusing with that many of them. The only one who would benefit from that would have been google, since they could use more of my data combined if i would have used chrome.
Not to mention about their "sign-in to chrome" feature. I never use it but recently a relative of mine came home and he signed in (he just wanted gmail, but he mistook the sign-in prompt for gmail's). I found it pretty hard to find a way to sign-out and then remove his user id from appearing in the start page of chrome. I think this "hiding of sign-out" is deliberately done.
Great!!!!
Edge has always been a better browser wen it comes to security of malwares, great to see it lead the line
Edge keep freezing all time for me. I am not the insider, though... Insiders might have a better experience! Firefox is very slow so now only Chrome the daily used browser. I don't access anything hanky-panky on the internet so I am not worried about Google collecting my data. I still use Edge for the accessing bank accounts!
Have you tried to refresh your computer?
Switch to Opera. Does everything Chrome does, better. Performance, battery life, UI, convenience, features!
Though they haven't fixed an API that allows websites to view your battery levels. This allows tracking across the web, even if you are in safe mode or using a VPN. Firefox just deleted it. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/nov/01/firefox-disable-batte...
I get performance issues and freezing with Edge too (on my Surface Pro 3). It was worse without an ad-blocker, but even now I'm running one it still happens a couple of times a day. Compared to Chrome where I can't remember the last time I had it lock up completely and it just feels like a smoother experience with multiple tabs open. Although I am still using Edge as my main browser so I spend less time in Chrome to give a completely fair comparison.
I've been using Chrome at work for Stackoverflow since there is a bug in Edge that stops it loading scripts and css and IE 11 doesn't always play well either. Two things I noticed, when using IE 11, the site loads pretty much instantly, opening the exact same link in Chrome sometimes takes a few minutes to even load the page. The second thing I noticed is after switching to Chrome for SO, no matter what browser I use to visit other sites nearly all adverts are suddenly developer related (wherever a site uses ads provided by Google). It amazes me at how quickly Google will grab your data and use it to make money even just from visiting a single site at which point they have at the very minimum your IP address along with anything else they can soak up from cookies and other tracking. I'm not a tin foil hat kind of guy so it doesn't really bother me it just doesn't seem that ethical with the amount of data they soak up and provide to 3rd parties. Yes it is all in terms and conditions we all agree to without reading, and it is a free service / browser etc. but it doesn't make me feel like Google is a responsible holder for my data and that's why I always avoid anything even remotely associated with Google where possible.
Thats most annoying thing that google does... search anything on chrome and it will show up on your email.... I have few emails that I have never used on chrome...and those emails are spam free...
Another crazy fact: I roam a lot, and on a daily basis, I get ads from Google in about 15 different languages... Google knows where I've been and are targeting me with ads for the countries where I've been.. and some of them I haven't even been to in a couple of years (like Germany), and I still get ads in German... Really?
goto about:flags and turn on few options and it will run like a ferrari
Your pc must be a real s###, Edge flies on mines.
Why my ****** pc affects Edge only and not Chrome?
My PC is great, and on many sites Edge does indeed freeze or crash. Granted these sites are huge (game wikis and databases, the Skyrim mods website, etc) but Chrome is still better at handling these than Edge is. Edge is great on a great deal of sites, however.
It's a Surface Pro 3, so Microsoft's own hardware. But as DCPaul says, Chrome works fine on the same PC.
Another reason I only use Edge! Thx for the report!
There's only one website that Edge cannot handle for me. Weichertone.com other than that, Edge is awesome
Like the mobile app side of things until extentions I use come to Edge then its a no go.
It's not just hanky-panky websites that are dangerous. Check out some of the Suggested items on msn.com articles. Those can lead to browser hijackers often.
Video playback within Edge/Win10 is horrible. They still haven't fixed YouTube.
Use MyTube. No ads.
Works great for me.
What happened worth your YouTube it don't know. I use it all the time. It works great. Very perfect rendering.
When it can sync bookmarks across platforms then I might have a look.
It does
I am not happy with Edge in its current state on Insider Preview (fast). It stalls a lot, and it does not seem to like too many open tabs. Work in progress ...
There, take that, Google!
Nice! Keep up the great work. Glad I'm a part of that.
its about time Windows OS ban Google browsers, since they're so bad ass about being bigger in Mobile that they wont release google apps on Windows 10 mobile. Why not emulate the same **** then well see who topples back down? Mobile and desktop are becoming one anyway. continuum is just a step fwd.
Kind of ironic that Google released that security flaw info about Edge in the hope of convincing users that Chrome is safer and now their precious browser fails to even come close to the Edge score in this test lol
well you can't expect google to block itself, can you? :P
This good grade must explain the vulnerability disclosure by Google. Google has always been a sore loser.
My love my Edge so far. Once I had to open a site with IE, I reported through feedback, it got fixed very quickly.
Cool but is it fast and stable?
Switched to Opera not too long ago. Its just so much more snappy and responsive. Especially with scripts.
when will MS update all their bloody website to work with edge? that should be the question to ask those fools.
Edge is not perfect. It's the new kid on the block. Chrome is at version 53 and it's still a fat wollowing pig. 53 versions folks... tells me that there was something wrong with 1 to 52. I work in engineering. A good look at the capabilities of a Engineering design staff is the number of revisions due to design errors on a drawing. Any more then 5 and you have an issue more then 10 and you have a problem. I just finished a major dam design, it's starting construction, three revisions. Drops mic.
Haha, what the heck? Then I guess Windows must be getting worse and worse since it's at build 14955 (which, and I hope you'll agree, is a bit larger than 53). Your comment is ridiculously embarrassing (like most comments here when it comes to Google, frankly).
The only problem with edge is its not available for other platforms, I work on all of my devices i.e Laptop, Tablet and Mobile, so I need everything need to be in sync, Firefox is great for me, when edge becomes available for Android then only I'll consider edge. And for security my TOTAL SECURITY PROVIDES BROWSER SANDBOX feature. The only thing I wish is availability of EDGE for other platforms, it has great potential but no mobile platform.
Android, hehe. Edge is on windows which is available on all hardware platforms.
I mean, it's pretty easy to have a secure browser when you have no one using it...
If the choice is giving up every bit of information to Google and also be generally less secure? Yes, please. Every day of the week.
Not really
That's a pretty sharp Edge! (pun intended)
Edge is good - if only I could use my password manager (RoboForm) with it, I would never leave it. Unfortunately, I can't without switching to IE every time which is a royal pain, so I use Firefox most of the time.
Probably not a good enough reason for you to change (and hopefully RoboForm will soon add an Edge plugin), but RoboForm competitor, LastPass, works great with Edge. Since the Anniversary Update and Edge Extensions, for me, Windows 10 and Edge are now feature complete and fully usable. Plenty of room for further enhancements, but no longer any holes that prevent me from using and not looking back at older versions of Windows or browsers.
Everyone should be aware of the Edge extension for Microsoft rewards. It will remove your ability to browse and earn with your phone while removing the amount of points one earns daily.

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