Update: Added Google's statement below.
Microsoft Bing displays what is being categorized as a misleading Google-esque search page when users search for 'Google,' making it look like you are on the competing search engine.
When performing searches on Microsoft Bing, users are shown a standard search page consisting of a search field with your search term at the top, followed by various user interface elements, such as the different Bing features, advertisements, and search results.
Source: BleepingCompuer
As first reported by WindowsLatest, When searching for Google directly from the Bing homepage, users are now presented with a Google-like doodle with an additional search field underneath it. All other content on the visible page also promotes Google's services, making it feel very much like you are on Google.
The only visible clues you are not on Google is that bing.com shows in the address bar and there is text promoting Microsoft Bing under the search bar.
Source: BleepingComputer
One user who shared the change with BleepingComputer said that they find this new page misleading, as it may trick people into thinking they are on another search engine.
"When you search for 'Google' on Bing, you are presented with a fake Google-esque search page," X user Sepher tweeted.
"Microsoft is misleading people into thinking that they are on another search engine by not propagating the search query into this search field."
What makes this even more deceptive is that this Google search listing page is automatically scrolled down so that you do not see Bing's normal header, further disguising that you are in the Bing search results.
Source: BleepingComputer
In BleepingComputer's tests, this alternate search page is also shown for Yandex, Russia's largest search engine. However, Bing does not show the custom search page for DuckDuckGo, Brave Search, or Start Page.
BleepingComputer contacted Microsoft to ask about this custom search page but has not received a reply.
However, Google directed me to a tweet by Parisa Tabriz, VP/GM of Chrome, as their official statement.
"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but Microsoft spoofing the Google homepage is another tactic in its long history of tricks to confuse users & limit choice," tweeted Tabriz.
"New year; new low Microsoft."
Update 1/6/25: Added Google's official statement.
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Comments
abides - 11 months ago
Microsoft gonna microsoft.
acgp - 11 months ago
It seams they already fixed it...
Anyway I think Bing is improving, at least in Brazil, and several times I got more consistent search results specially about economic and political matters.
Also Copilot took me out of trouble several times in Linux systems.
ThomasMann - 11 months ago
Are you joking ? OR are you serious....
First of all: I hope this is a matter of your being a portuguese language native:
"I got more consistent search results specially about economic and political matters."
This means nothing other than: Microsoft gives you the identical lies as answers to your questions. Which is probably true...
Should you actually be interested in correct, NOT-FILTERED answers then, like any normal persons you should simply avoid Bing or even google and use duckduckgo search....
NoneRain - 11 months ago
The bad thing about search engines that collect data, is that they collect data to provide results. The good thing about them is that they use the data to provide results.
I don't use DuckDuckGo because it takes more time to find the stuff I'm looking for, while with Bing (or Google), it will provide more precise results based on my past searches.
Between Google and Bing, I use Bing. It was terrible before, but now it pretty good. You need to be logged in, and be using it for a while so it can provide results based on your profile (just like Google does).
About news and stuff, I do agree unfiltered results are better (DuckDuckGo), just remember the websites providing those news aren't.
Lawrence Abrams - 11 months ago
Doesn't look fixed. I still see the Google-like page.
CJatWork - 11 months ago
I thought it was fixed too but then tried in a private window (I'm running Firefox) and there it was, the "Google-like" page. Tied to an existing Bing cookie? I assume that because I don't clear out everything, all the time; just my level of privacy, or rather, lack thereof, heh.
DyingCrow - 11 months ago
One thing hovering in my head, why would someone use bing to search for google? Maybe i missed something there.
Still working as "intended". This is so messed up. The fact that it scrolls down immediately to hide the initial search bar really tells the story.
kryp-tonite - 11 months ago
I work in a large company so I know how "regular" users of computers work and think because I see how they think and click when I ask them to do something and watch. Most users do not go to www.google.com when you ask them to Google something, they go to the addres bar or search bar in new tab and type in "google" and usually click the top link. Even if I ask them to go to our very own company website, they open a browser and type in "company" and click the top link rather than browsing to www.company.com (which they KNOW is our website). Guess what, 9 times out of 10 the top link is also a sponsored ad when using Bing or Google.. ugh..)
So when I ask them to "Google" something, they will open the (Edge) browser and type into the search bar presented on the new tab page. They are expecting to be brought to the Google search engine (or ready and willing to click that top link to get there), but instead land Google-esque search page that looks EXACTLY like Google search results. However, in the "search" field on the browser page, the search field is empty (meaning the user technically did not search "google" for <user query>. The user would never pick this up.) As far as they're concerned, they're on Google now and gonna hit that search field, not knowing they just used Bing search.
Edge's default search engine using the search field on a new tab page is Bing. You'd think that changing your default search engine in settings is enough, but this doesn't change the behaviour of opening a new tab and using that search field which defaults to Bing regardless. So we use policies to enforce rules that say queries typed into Edge address bar OR the search field of a blank new Edge tab are forced to use the default search engine, Google, rather than defaulting to Bing.
You also cannot explicitly set Edge to open new tabs on a specific webpage (ie. make a new tab open to www.google.com).
I hate these companies trying to collect our data. FWIW, I use Brave browser and DuckDuckGo search personally.
deltasierra - 11 months ago
Folks using MS Edge are defaulted to having Bing search results, so that's why and how users are using the address bar (err "omnibar"?) to search for Google Search (lol); many have become accustomed to not putting in full addresses, even for easy and well-known sites like google.com. Additionally, it's hard to know how many folks don't know that they can change their default browser search engine, or how to accomplish it if they know it's possible.
Another low for MS but not their lowest low, nor surprising.