This week, Elon Musk changed the name of Twitter to X. The move divided opinions: a lot of people liked it, a lot of people hated it. Microsoft Edge, on the other hand, decided to just do its job and face the novelty as a problem. A browser security feature identified the new social network icon as a possible fraud attempt.
Microsoft Edge has a security feature that identifies when a Progressive Web App (PWA) changes its icon or name. The intention is to find possible scam or fraud attempts and alert users to this.
PWAs are applications developed with web tools, but that function as native programs of the operating system. Browsers made using Chromium as a base (such as Edge, Chrome, Brave and others) can install this type of app.
If the user has Twitter installed as PWA, Edge issues a warning with the following message: “Check out the icon update. If this app is trying to trick you into thinking it’s a different app, uninstall it.”
Security feature has been in Edge and Chrome since 2021
Microsoft’s browser reaction comes because Twitter’s blue bird has been replaced by the letter X on a black background.
A malicious web application, for example, could use the exchange to masquerade as legitimate and steal data.
Theoretically, Chrome should also issue warnings in these circumstances, but so far, there have only been reports of this kind in Edge.
This security feature has been around since 2021 on both browsers. Initially, it was optional and needed to be enabled on the Flags page, of experimental features, but it now works by default.
Be that as it may, rest assured: if this warning appears to you, just click OK. Twitter is now called X and no longer has the little blue bird, but it’s not trying to fool you.
Twitter changed its name to become a super app
On Sunday (23), Elon Musk, owner of Twitter, announced the name change of the social network, which was renamed X. The idea is to turn it into an “app for everything”, including payments and banking services.
The exchange was, in a way, expected. In April, Twitter, Inc. ceased to exist. The social network is now run by X Corp. And Musk was already talking about creating a super app in October 2022, shortly after completing the purchase of the platform.
The new name, however, could cause legal problems for the company. As Reuters points out, Meta, Microsoft and other companies have X as their trademarks.
