Edge "Clear browsing data on close" not working

Question

Hello everyone,

One of the reasons I use Edge is because it allows me to clear all browsing data on exit. The last time I checked, other browsers didn't allow you to use this. While I've always respected Microsoft for enabling this feature, I've often thought this would make Edge unpopular with websites who have goals of collecting user data. The setting to enable this is Settings | Privacy, search, and services | Choose what to clear every time you close the browser. On my system I ask it to clear everything.

I always assumed this was working but yesterday discovered, accidentally, that it is not. While accessing a website, I noticed that I didn't have to login. The website remembered my login credentials from the last time I used Edge. This should not have happened. I then investigated and found that some cookies (and presumably other data) were being retained, after closing Edge. What is interesting is that when I use the manual method ("Settings | Privacy, search, and services | Clear browsing data now") all of the browsing data is deleted.

Here are things that I've tried but haven't worked:

• repair Edge
• reset Edge
• remove Edge as startup app
• disable Edge apps running after Edge closes
• enable Edge apps running after Edge closes
• disable all extensions

Has anyone else experienced this problem? Anyone know a fix? My system is Windows 11, version 22H2

Thanks,

Minnesota Frank

Answer 1

Hello Minnesota Frank.

Welcome to Microsoft Community.

Regarding to your information I assume that you can't clean the cookies with the feature "Clear browsing data on close".

Based on the conversation history and my knowledge, it appears that you have tried almost all troubleshooting steps related to

Microsoft Edge. Since we cannot reproduce the issue you are experiencing, it is possible that this is a problem specific to your user account.

First, you can try creating a new profile in Microsoft Edge and see if the issue persists.

edge://settings/profiles

If the problem still occurs in the new profile, I recommend trying the Microsoft Edge Canary version. If the issue does not occur in

the Canary version, it suggests that the problem may have been caused by a recent update to the stable version of Edge.

In this case, you can continue using the Canary version and wait for the official Edge update to address the problem.

Become a Microsoft Edge Insider | Microsoft Edge

However, if the issue persists even in the new profile and the Canary version, I suggest providing feedback to the Microsoft Edge team

about this issue by pressing Alt+Shift+I in Edge.

In the meantime, you can try using the InPrivate mode (Ctrl+Shift+N) or disable the cookies as a temporary workaround until

they fix the issue.

edge://settings/content/cookies

If there is anything not clear, please do not hesitate to let me know.

Best Regards,

Tommy-MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Answer 2

Creating a new profile solved the problem. Thanks!!

Answer 3

I have the same problem with history and cookies not deleting on close

After some testing I believe it has something to do with the way Edge remains open in the background and does not fully close

If I close edge by clicking X or menu close history and cookies are not deleted

If I use Task Manager to end task or restart pc then history and cookies are correctly deleted as intended

The continue running background extensions toggle in settings does not change this behaviour

Answer 4

I also have the same problem with history and cookies not deleting on close. I think you are on to something, Carlos. C:\Windows\System32\taskkill.exe /IM msedge.exe /F also works to clear history and cookies correctly. Please someone report this problem to Microsoft.