Updated April 28, 2022 at 1:45 PM ET: Microsoft Edge Secure Network is available for some Edge Canary users as part of a controlled rollout, according to Leo Varela. The original story follows.
What you need to know
- Microsoft Edge will soon have the option to encrypt an internet connection.
- The feature, called Microsoft Edge Secure Network, is not available yet, but a support page for it appears on Microsoft's website.
- Users will get 1GB of encrypted data per month for free.
Microsoft Edge will soon have the option to encrypt an internet connection to protect people's privacy and information. Microsoft Edge Secure Network is a preview feature that is not yet available, even for Insiders. There is, however, a support page for it on Microsoft's website.
Microsoft Edge Secure Network is powered through a partnership between Microsoft and Cloudflare. As noted by XDA, Edge's upcoming feature appears similar to Cloudflare's 1.1.1.1 service.
"When using Microsoft Edge Secure network, your data is routed from Edge through an encrypted tunnel to create a secure connection, even when using a non-secure URL that starts with HTTP," reads Microsoft's support page. "This makes it harder for hackers to access your browsing data on a shared public Wi-Fi network."
Much like the best VPNs, Microsoft Edge Secure Network helps prevent online tracking and keeps location information private. It's unclear if the feature could be used to watch geo-locked content in a similar way to a VPN. Microsoft Edge Secure Network "replaces your geolocation with a similar regional address," according to Microsoft.
Edge users will be able to use up to 1GB of data every month for free through Microsoft's encryption tool.
While it's not possible to try out Microsoft Edge Secure Network at this time, steps to enable it are already listed, suggesting that it may become available in the near future.
Microsoft has several versions of its Edge browser for testing new and experimental features. A support document for the browser suggests that a new feature for privately browsing the web is on the way.
