Microsoft Edge 113 removes Basic Enhanced Security Mode

Microsoft has just released Microsoft Edge 113 Stable for all supported operating systems and platforms. The new version of the browser makes a change to its Enhanced Security Mode, automatic updating on macOS devices, and a bunch of new policies for system administrators.

Microsoft Edge 113 is already available and most installations of the web browser should receive the update automatically in the coming days. Desktop users may speed up the installation of the update by selecting Menu > Help & Feedback > About Microsoft Edge. The browser should download and install the update when the page is opened.

Removed Basic Enhanced Security Mode

One of the main changes of Microsoft Edge 113 removes something from the browser.  Microsoft notes in the release notes that it has consolidated the security level settings of the browser’s Enhanced Security Mode.

Enhanced Security Mode is disabled by default on most systems. It enables protections against certain threats and disables the Just In Time Compiler, which makes certain exploits more difficult to use.

Edge, up until now, supported the three modes Basic, Balanced and Strict. The three modes determined the scope of the feature. Basic mode, the mode that Microsoft removed, enabled the mitigations for “less visited sites” only. Balanced expanded this to all sites that were not visited frequently in Edge and Strict expanded it even further to all sites.

With Basic gone, Microsoft Edge users have the option to set the mode to Balanced or Strict. The descriptions of the two modes have not changed. Edge users who have configured the browser to use the Basic mode are likely moved to Balanced mode during the upgrade to Edge 113, but there is no confirmation from Microsoft about this in the release notes.

The second main change of Edge 113 is that the browser users a new updater on macOS devices. The switch from Microsoft Autoupdate to EdgeUpdater. Microsoft explains here that the switch “provides an update experience tailored to browser usage, with fast, reliable updates and minimal user interruption”. EdgeUpdater furthermore allowed the company to align its backend systems and allows it to “deliver new macOS management experiences”.

System administrators need to know that policies have changed and that the new policies need to be set before updating to Microsoft 113.

Microsoft Edge 113 comes with PDF View Settings and Microsoft Root Store policy updates. The first, RestorePdfView, gives administrators control over Edge’s PDF View Recovery feature. The second is a deprecated policy that will be removed in Edge 115.

The release notes lists four new policies:

EnforceLocalAnchorConstraintsEnabled – Determines whether the built-in certificate verifier will enforce constraints encoded into trust anchors loaded from the platform trust store
ReadAloudEnabled – Enable Read Aloud feature in Microsoft Edge
ShowDownloadsToolbarButton – Show Downloads button on the toolbar
TabServicesEnabled – Tab Services enabled

Edge 113 updates the Chromium core as well,

Now You: have you tried Edge recently?

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