Microsoft removes 'harmless' Copilot app that was quietly installed on your Windows PCs

Microsoft has announced that it has completely removed all traces of the Microsoft Copilot app that users found installed on their systems on their Installed apps list. The first reports of such an app, which was 8KB in size, emerged towards the end of March this year. Soon after, Microsoft had to roll back the update after it took notice of the issue.

The tech giant later stated that the app was totally harmless and it was not meant for capturing or analysing any user data nor did it run any code in the background.

Today, on its Windows health dashboard website that tracks various WIndows server and client bugs, Microsoft has closed the issue and declared it as "resolved." The company says that the app has been removed from both client and server systems alike and users will no longer find it on their Installed apps list.

Microsoft recommends installing Edge stable version 126.0.2592.56 (the Dev version was released at the end of last month) which was released today. Make sure to restart the browser in case you still see the app after finishing the browser update. The company writes:

Resolution: This issue is now resolved with Edge browser updates released on April 26, 2024, and June 13, 2024. Edge version 124.0.2478.67 was released on April 26 and removed the package ‘Microsoft chat provider for Copilot in Windows’ from all servers affected by this issue. Edge version 126.0.2592.56 was released on June 13, 2024, and removed the same package from all Windows client versions affected by this issue. The ‘Microsoft Copilot’ entry will not show in the Installed apps list in the Settings menu once the Edge browser is updated.

Hence, all you have to do is update to the latest Edge release and you should be good. If you still find the Copilot app on your Installed apps list even after restarting the browser after the update, make sure to restart your Windows as well. If it persists, you should probably file the bug on Feedback Hub.

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