Google is the most popular and widely used search engine in the world. For some time now, Microsoft has been trying to take a share of the market with Bing, its own online search engine. While the company’s service is decent, many prefer to stick with Google by default. That said, it seems that Microsoft is tricking users into thinking Bing is, in fact, Google.
Google Search is characterized by the “Doodles” that the company implements in the search bar. Doodles are dynamic drawings or sketches that adapt to special dates and that sometimes even hide easter eggs. Bing is very different in this regard, betting on a main page with a simple search bar over a wallpaper and a news carousel below.
Bing “disguises” itself as Google Search to try to trick you
However, Windows Latest found something interesting while using Bing. When you type “Google” into Microsoft’s search engine, you won’t see the usual results page. The first thing you’ll get is a search bar with a sort of “Doodle” that mimics the style implemented by Google in its Search service. This search bar is, of course, the Bing one. The results for your search will actually be available at the bottom of the UI. We were able to reproduce this on our side, as shown below.
There’s an “x” button in the top right corner of Bing’s “Doodled” search bar. If you click it, you’ll remove it from the UI, and you won’t get that fake Google bar as a result when searching for “Google” in Bing again. You can still see it again if you try the search in an incognito tab, though.
It’s striking that Microsoft is resorting to tricks like this. The company has worked hard to make Bing a strong competitor to Google by adding unique features such as the Copilot AI-powered tech. However, it’s not a good idea to try to manipulate people’s actions into using your services. When they discover the truth, it will leave a negative impression. This is comparable to those annoying fake ads that take you to a completely different site than the one advertised.
