Is DuckDuckGo considered a Microsoft app or third party
This fact-check may be outdated. Consider refreshing it to get the most current information.
Executive summary
DuckDuckGo is an independent company and not a Microsoft app, but it has had contractual ties with Microsoft that affected how its browser handled Microsoft-owned trackers; those ties involved ad and search syndication agreements rather than ownership or merger [1] [2]. Reporting and DuckDuckGo’s own help pages stress that the search engine does not embed Microsoft scripts or tie searches back to individual users, even as past contractual exceptions in the browser allowed some Microsoft tracking scripts on third‑party sites [3] [1] [2].
1. The legal and commercial relationship: partnership, not acquisition
Multiple accounts describe DuckDuckGo’s relationship with Microsoft as a commercial partnership—principally a search syndication and advertising arrangement—where Microsoft supplies ad inventory and other content integrations; reporters and DuckDuckGo documentation frame this as a partnership rather than Microsoft owning DuckDuckGo or its apps [1] [4]. The practical consequence of that contract, according to DuckDuckGo’s CEO and investigative reporting, was a clause that prevented the browser from fully blocking certain Microsoft‑owned scripts on external websites, a technical limitation born of the syndication agreement rather than corporate control [2] [5].
2. What that meant in practice: browser exceptions for Microsoft scripts
Security researchers and several outlets found that DuckDuckGo’s mobile browser allowed Microsoft trackers to execute on non‑DuckDuckGo sites because of contractual restrictions, a fact DuckDuckGo acknowledged publicly, saying the exception applied to its browser and not to the DuckDuckGo search engine itself [2] [5]. Coverage emphasized the nuance: the browser’s tracker protections were weakened in specific cases where the search syndication contract supposedly prevented blocking Microsoft‑owned scripts while pages were loading, a gap the company later said it worked to close [4] [6].
3. DuckDuckGo’s privacy claims and its clarifications
DuckDuckGo’s official help pages and spokespeople repeatedly state that their search engine does not save personal identifiers with search queries and that partners like Microsoft receive proxied requests that cannot be tied back to individuals through DuckDuckGo’s systems; the company also insists Microsoft does not build user profiles based on ad clicks served on DuckDuckGo search pages [1] [3]. Independent fact‑checks note that while the advertising partnership exists, it is limited to ad placements and that DuckDuckGo made changes (notably in August 2022) to eliminate a gap that had previously allowed some Microsoft tracking scripts to send data [7].
4. How outlets and researchers framed the controversy
Coverage split between outlets highlighting a “tracking deal” or “exception” that seemed at odds with DuckDuckGo’s privacy marketing (Wired, BleepingComputer, Business Today) and fact‑checkers that pushed back on hyperbolic headlines claiming a secret plot to hand user histories to Microsoft or Bill Gates personally [5] [2] [8] [7]. The factual throughline accepted by most reputable sources is narrower: a contractual ad/syndication relationship created a browser‑level exception for Microsoft scripts that DuckDuckGo has since addressed and clarified, not an outright ownership or permanent surrender of user privacy to Microsoft [2] [7] [1].
5. Bottom line and reporting limits
Based on the available reporting and DuckDuckGo’s public statements, DuckDuckGo remains a third‑party company that partners with Microsoft for ads and search syndication—its apps are not Microsoft apps—although past contractual terms did force the DuckDuckGo browser to permit some Microsoft‑owned tracking scripts on non‑DuckDuckGo sites until those gaps were closed or narrowed [1] [2] [7]. The sources provided do not show Microsoft owning DuckDuckGo or its apps, and they document both the technical exception and DuckDuckGo’s assurances about how searches and ad clicks are handled; if further corporate documentation (e.g., acquisition filings or board minutes) is needed to prove independence beyond partnership language, those materials are not present in the supplied reporting [1] [7].