September 2nd 2014
Google is encouraging users to run the latest version of their browsers to do so, by showing old versions of its search page to those who have not updated.
Many users experienced seeing 2013 versions of the Google and image search homepages over the weekend. The search results appeared in the modern format, but every search had to be carried out via the older page. Cleaning cookies and disabling extensions and add-ons had no effect.
A large number of users reported the issue to a Google forum, to which an employee of the search giant responded by posting that the change had been made to "encourage" people to upgrade their browser.
The move has been criticised as "ridiculous" and "heavy handed" by many, saying that Google had not explained why the change had been made, and also that they preferred to stay with their albeit older versions because they had features missing from the newer browsers. Many have threatened to start using Bing instead.
Get Safe Online recommends that you always use the most up-to-date version of your selected browser … click here to find out why.
