Microsoft says the brand new Copilot app, mistakenly added to the record of put in Home windows apps by current Edge updates, would not gather or relay knowledge to its servers.
The corporate started testing Microsoft Copilot in Home windows Server 2025 preview builds earlier this yr. Nevertheless, after going through backlash from Home windows admins, Microsoft eliminated Copilot from these builds.
For that reason, they had been stunned to see a brand new 8KB Microsoft Copilot app added to the record of put in applications on dwell manufacturing builds of Home windows Server 2022.
As the corporate revealed on Tuesday, this recognized situation additionally affected programs working Home windows 10 22H2 and Home windows 11 21H2 or later.
“Updates to Edge browser version 123.0.2420.65, released on March 28, 2024 and later, might incorrectly install a new package (MSIX) called ‘Microsoft chat provider for Copilot in Windows’ on Windows devices. Resulting from this, the Microsoft Copilot app might appear in the Installed apps in Settings menu,” Redmond mentioned.
Microsoft additionally says that the Copilot app these current Edge updates add on impacted gadgets cannot really be used to launch Copilot and doesn’t gather any consumer or system knowledge.
“It is important to note that the Microsoft chat provider for Copilot in Windows does not execute any code or process, and does not acquire, analyze, or transmit device or environment data in any capacity,” Microsoft explains.
The package deal is meant solely to arrange some Home windows gadgets for future Home windows Copilot enablement and won’t be seen on all Home windows gadgets.
Furthermore, in accordance with Microsoft, even when the put in part causes a Copilot app to show as put in on the system, it will not totally set up or allow Home windows Copilot.
“As part of the upcoming resolution of this issue, the chat provider for Copilot in Windows component will be removed from devices where Microsoft Copilot is not intended to be enabled or installed. This includes most Windows Server devices,” Microsoft mentioned.
“We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release of Microsoft Edge.”
The corporate is now additionally testing adverts within the Home windows 11 Begin menu as a part of a brand new experiment to assist customers “discover great apps from the Microsoft Store.”
That is a part of a trial rolling out within the Beta Channel to a “small set of Insiders” who’ve put in Home windows 11 Insider Preview Construct 22635.3495.
Two years in the past, Redmond promoted its Edge net browser within the Home windows 10 Begin Menu and by chance broke each the Taskbar and the Begin Menu whereas testing Microsoft Groups adverts on some Home windows Insider builds.
