Help protect your privacy by changing Microsoft web browser settings to force DNS-over-HTTPS to be enabled.
Microsoft announced a few weeks ago that it wanted to integrate native support for the DNS-over-HTTPS protocol on Windows 10. Thanks to it, the protection of the privacy of its users will be reinforced thanks to the automatic encryption of DNS requests.
If, for the time being, the date of availability of such a function in the Microsoft OS is unknown, users can already activate the function in the Microsoft Edge web browser.
Like Chrome and Firefox, the new version of Microsoft’s browser supports encrypted DNS. However, the feature is not available by default and requires that you activate a specific setting within a hidden menu. Here is how to do it.
- Download Microsoft Edge for Windows 10 (Free)
- Download Microsoft Edge for Windows 7/8 (Free)
1. Access the flags
The new version of Microsoft Edge is based on Chromium, so it shares a number of things with Chrome. This is the case, for example, of flags, hidden experimental functions that can be activated. To activate encrypted DNS on Microsoft Edge, you will need to access these famous flags.
To do this, open an Edge window then, in the address bar, type edge: // flags and validate using the Enter key on the keyboard.
2. Activate the flag
In the search field displayed at the top of the window, type secure dns lookups.
Once the setting is displayed, click the drop-down menu on the right and change the Default value to Enabled. Then restart the browser by clicking on the appropriate button.
3. Configure a compatible DNS on Windows
Enabling DNS-over-HTTPS protocol in Microsoft Edge can only work if the DNS configured on your PC supports this feature.
You can check it by going directly to https://1.1.1.1/help, CloudFlare’s DNS service, where you will see a line Using DNS over HTTPS (DoH), followed by the mention Yes when encrypted DNS is active, and No when it is not.
To change the DNS resolver configured on your Windows PC, open the Settings using the Windows + i keyboard shortcut and go to the menu dedicated to Network and Internet.
Under the heading Change your network settings, click Change adapter options.
Depending on your connection type (Ethernet or Wi-Fi), right click on the network card, and enter Properties.
Then select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP / IPv4), and click the Properties button.
In the window that appears, in the lower part dedicated to DNS, choose to Use the following DNS server address and enter the addresses of the primary and secondary DNS servers you want to use. Then confirm by pressing OK.
Note however, if you are using the IPv6 version of the TPC / IP protocol, you will need to select this option (TCP / IPv6), and enter the addresses of the corresponding DNS servers. Check with your DNS provider to get it.
To check if Edge is now using encrypted DNS, return to https://1.1.1.1/help. The Debug Information pane should then display Yes in front of the line Using DNS over HTTPS.