If you're a Microsoft Windows user, you know that the blue icon with an e on it stands for Internet Explorer. If you're like most consumers, you've never clicked on it and used it, however.

There's no doubt about it that most of us would rather use other browsers instead of Internet Explorer.

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It's because a ruling back in 2009 required Microsoft to give European consumers the option to choose their own web browser and not force the Internet Explorer on them.

The ruling was only good for five years, however, and this period has come to an end. Now, users will have to deal with the fact that IE will once again become the default browser in their computers and/or laptops.

According to Extreme Tech, the main reason as to why there was a ruling five years ago was because Microsoft was found to have "been unfairly abusing its operating system monopoly to push Internet Explorer into the hands of millions of unwitting, unfortunate users."

As Windows continued to develop and upgrade its operating systems, IE became all the more attached to it.

Fortunately though, Europeans can still have the Internet Explorer replaced as soon as they get access to other web browsers and switching to them as the default browser.

TagsMicrosoft Windows, Microsoft news, Microsoft Latest News, Microsoft Web Browser, Microsoft Update, Microsoft Windows News, Microsoft Windows Update, Microsoft Windows Latest News, Microsoft Windows Europe, Microsoft Windows UK