Microsoft Says Edge Password Security Vulnerability Is ‘By Design’—Is It Time To Switch To Chrome?
The researcher said Edge decrypts saved credentials at startup, while Chrome does not show the same memory exposure.
- Cybersecurity researcher Tom discovered that Microsoft Edge loads every saved password into memory at startup in plaintext, decrypting credentials even when the password manager is not actively in use.
- Unlike Google Chrome, which uses a secure design, Edge is the only Chromium-based browser Tom tested that exhibits this behavior; The German tech website Heise Online replicated the issue.
- Tom writes that if an attacker gains administrative access on a terminal server, they can access the memory of all logged-on user processes, violating established cybersecurity best practices.
- After Tom disclosed the findings to Microsoft, the company responded by stating the password behavior in Edge was "by design," though Mashable has requested further information.
- Concerned users should consider alternative password managers to protect sensitive credentials, given Microsoft's alleged response to Tom regarding the security issue.
19 Articles
19 Articles
A Norwegian security researcher has discovered that the Microsoft Edge password manager keeps all the logged identifiers in live memory from the start of the browser, including for sites you do not visit. Microsoft has confirmed that this is a deliberate choice.
A cybersecurity researcher has warned that Microsoft Edge stores passwords in memory in plain text, posing a risk especially in shared environments. ...
Password managers are supposed to help store login identifiers safely, avoiding users from having to memorize them. In general, they are stored in the cloud with end-to-end encryption. Passwords should also be decrypted in memory only for a short period of time. However, Microsoft's password manager in the Edge browser fails on this point. According to one report, passwords are stored in memory.
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