Microsoft Bing is tricking unsuspecting users searching for Google by displaying a webpage that looks like Google Search.

Is imitation really the best form of flattery? In an effort to get more people to use Bing, Microsoft appears to be disguising its Bing searches as Google ones for any users seeking to ditch Microsoft's default for the world's most used search engine.

But if you use that search bar that appears below the doodle, your search results will still be funneled through Bing. Scrolling on the page with the spoofed Google bar reveals the actual Bing search results, however, which start with a link to the real Google search engine.

Searching for “Google” on Microsoft Bing right now (when logged out) brings up a search experience that looks a lot like Google, with a graphic akin to one of the search giant’s signature Doodles, but is actually still Microsoft Bing.

To trigger the Google result, you must use Bing without logging into a Microsoft account. The Google result has a search bar, an image that looks suspiciously like a Google Doodle, and even some tiny text under the bar, creating a Google-like design.

This type of strategy is sometimes called a “dark pattern,” or a deceptive pattern that tricks users into doing something they did not intend. Below the Google-looking search bar, including a Google Doodle-esque cartoon, regular Bing results are displayed.

In well over a decade of journalism, I've seen a fair amount of copied designs, but I've never seen anything as blatant as Bing's attempt to hoodwink people into believing they're using Google. Since time immemorial,

Microsoft is pulling yet another trick to get people to use its Bing search engine. If you use Bing right now without signing into a Microsoft account and search for Google, you’ll get a page that looks an awful lot like... Google.