Microsoft Edge storing passwords as plain text? Microsoft responds.

Microsoft says Edge’s password handling is intentional after a researcher found saved passwords are loaded into memory in plaintext at startup.

The researcher said Edge decrypts all stored passwords into memory at launch, unlike Chrome, which appears to avoid the same exposure.

Heise Online replicated the behavior, adding weight to concerns that saved credentials may be easier to extract from memory on a compromised system.

If accurate, the finding raises security questions for Edge’s password manager and may push some users to consider alternatives.