We implicitly trust our browsers every time we go online, but sadly that trust is often misplaced. When you visit websites in the comfort of your own home, you don’t want or expect details of your activities to be collected, shared and used to build a profile of your interests, so you can be targeted with adverts. But that’s exactly what happens if you use Chrome or Edge.
The two most popular PC browsers, with three billion and 300 million users respectively, are also the worst for tracking you online and gathering your data. This is claimed to be for your own good – to ensure you see relevant content and recommendations, and to improve the quality and performance of Google and Microsoft products and services – but we all know it’s about making money.
Thankfully, there are now plenty of browsers that actually respect your privacy, and make protecting your data as important as loading web pages properly. These programs typically fund their development via donations and optional paid-for features, rather than personalised ads based on your web activities.
Although these private browsers have the same goal, their features and settings – and the level of anonymity they promise – vary greatly. Here, we recommend the five best browsers for different privacy purposes, and explain why they’re all preferable to Chrome and Edge.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
• Browse the web without your data being collected
• Block ads and trackers without installing an extension
• Instantly delete all traces of your online activities
• Conceal your location and identity
• Block ads in YouTube videos
• Hide cookie consent pop-ups automatically
• Tweak your browser’s settings for maximum privacy
• Stop your ISP seeing which sites you visit
FIVE WAYS CHROME AND EDGE TRACK YOU
1 They target you with personalised ads
Google and Microsoft use their browsers to collect data about your interests and online behaviour, so they can target you with personalised adverts. These ads are then displayed on websites by the companies’ respective advertising networks, as well as in the Google and Bing search engines.
Microsoft admits in one of its support pages (www.snipca.com/47650) that “we’ll collect and use your browsing activity from within Microsoft Edge to personalise advertising, recommendations and experiences”. The information it gathers includes details of websites you’ve visited and saved to your Favourites, and how you use the browser – for example, the times of day you go online and the devices you browse on.
To limit this
