here are seven of the most notable

We didn’t even worry about privacy before. We enjoyed using browsers and search engines, but when we began to realize that Google was the big brother (or rather, one of them), some began (we began) to react and try to make life a little difficult for these companies.

Wear privacy extensions in the most popular browser on the market, Chrome, this is interesting, but the situation has become delicate since, for example, it turned out that Google’s “incognito mode” does not protect our browsing sessions as much as we thought.

In fact, a class action lawsuit that began in 2020 in the US ended with a unique resolution. Google will have to delete millions of data collected in incognito mode.

The news once again showed that both this and other companies They try to collect all possible data our activities, and they do this because they usually make their living from advertising, and this information is gold for advertisers.

Fortunately, users have had access to various developments for many years that protect our privacy and minimize risks. Of course, there are more sophisticated options, but a good way to achieve this goal is to use a privacy-focused browser.

There are some interesting alternatives here, so We’ll look briefly at seven of them. so you can get to know them and give them a try if these suggestions convince you.

It is important to emphasize that we have taken into account an assessment of the privacy and security features present in these designs, which are often analyzed on the excellent website PrivacyTests.org.

Thor

It’s probably the most famous of all privacy-focused browsers, and for good reason. The Onion Router (TOR, an acronym, although it is usually called Tor) is a project that stands out for its presence of a browser that provides access to the Darknet.

But Tor is also a network specifically focused on providing private websites with .onion addresses, which have been strengthened over the years and which, in version 3, are more secure and private than ever.

This browser is responsible for keeping our browsing sessions particularly private. For this connecting routes through random nodesencrypts the data several times and makes it very difficult to identify the user who is using it.

This means that we have excellent protection in another sense, but we must keep in mind that these operations slow down the user experience, and the numerous security options can be a little confusing for less experienced users. It may not be for all cases, but Tor is a fantastic browser if we want to make things difficult for anyone who wants to follow our trail on the Internet.

DuckDuckGo

This company is much more famous for its search engine, which over the years has become a great alternative to the Google search engine if we care about privacy, but its developers have also developed a browser with the same name, which we can download from the company’s website. Official website.

Of course, the default browser uses the DuckDuckGo search engine, which keeps us safe from tech giants tracking our searches. This also forces us to always use secure connections on any website.

It has your own incognito mode, although they call these “fire windows” and, as happens in other browsers, although not Chrome, no data is collected and browsing history and cookies are deleted. If you can, give it a try: it’s worth it to see the effect that occurs when you close that fire window.

In addition, it has a built-in code blocker that is activated when third-party software tries to collect our data or even install malware. We can customize its behavior and choose which trackers to block and which not.

Its simple interface and commitment to minimalism – it doesn’t complicate life much, and it doesn’t complicate it for us either – certainly ensures that it can be considered a worthy alternative when it comes to protection (at least a little more). our privacy. One that, mind you, is not entirely ideal.

brave

If Tor is a guarantee offering to guarantee our privacy to the greatest extent possible at a certain time, then Brave is a private browser on a daily basis. This development’s commitment to privacy includes a built-in ad blocker that has additional benefits: saves bandwidth as well as download time.

The browser has recently been enhanced by an artificial intelligence assistant called Leo, although some have criticized Brave’s recent focus on the world of cryptocurrencies: many of its new features, such as a wallet or its own BAT cryptocurrency, are aimed at supporting technologies related to this segment.

Regardless, we’re looking at a browser that certainly does exceptionally well when it comes to protecting our privacy, and that also does so by improving (significantly!) the user experience on the Internet. There are also several options that we can use to get the most out of them, and we are certainly looking at the clear example of private browsers.

Fire Fox

Mozilla’s people responsible for developing Firefox have long boasted that “no matter what you do on the Internet, Firefox doesn’t track you.” The translation used on his site is not perfect, but it highlights the relevance of the project, which is the most famous and popular alternative to the almighty Chrome.

Firefox also has an ad blocker that allows you to avoid (at least partially) the content that advertisers embed on all types of websites. Blocks third-party cookies, fingerprint detectors, and even cryptomining scripts that are sometimes used on certain websites.

But this is also what Firefox has a lot of experience when it comes to guaranteeing the lowest possible data collection and customization capabilities that are virtually unparalleled in the field. The ability to customize it and add all sorts of extensions (although sometimes there can be problems) has made it a great option for many users.

The best argument for Firefox being a protector of our privacy is the fact that it is an open source project that is also almost single-handedly fighting the avalanche of Chromium-based browsers and is supported by the non-governmental organization Mozilla Foundation.

Librewolf

Surprisingly, Librewolf on macOS – the version I reviewed – is installed natively via Homebrew, although there is also the option to download a disk image (.dmg file).

The project is a “custom and independent” version of Firefox that aims to guarantee “user freedom, privacy and security,” the project’s official website says. Both documentation and source code are available so anyone can contribute to or learn from the project.

Among its options are lack of telemetrythe use of private search engines such as DuckDuckGo, Searx or Qwant, as well as the integration by default of uBlock Origin, an extension that we can of course install ourselves in other browsers, but here it is already preconfigured and active.

We also came across a development that performs particularly well in an analysis by PrivacyTests, a website that evaluates different browsers, both desktop and mobile, and analyzes whether they support certain security mechanisms. According to these analyses, Librewolf is a browser that is on par with Brave in terms of user privacy and security protection mechanisms.

Safari

Although the market share of Mac computers is much more muted than that of Windows-based computers, the browser developed by Apple has always had a reputation for protecting our privacy. As with the rest of your products and services, a non-advertising business model will help.

Thus, we are faced with a very suitable option for Apple computer users, especially since the company pays great attention to development, which it knows is especially used by iPhone users.

Of course suspicions arise In this case, Google is paying Apple a fortune to become the default search engine in Safari – but we can easily change this search engine to any other. There is also another set of options that we can configure to ensure our privacy is a little more secure, all of which makes it a good alternative if you’re looking for a search engine with which you can navigate (a little more) calmly. mind.

ghosts

Based on Firefox, we came across a proposal that focuses on providing additional privacy features through a development that bears its name, Ghostery.

The main feature of the browser is precisely that native integration of Ghostery extensionswhich offers blocking of trackers, ads and other types of pop-ups that try to load automatically on various websites.

We also have a private search as long as we become “contributors” to the project and make a “donation” – more accurately, a subscription – on a monthly or annual basis. If we are already users of Firefox, the advantages a priori seem reduced, but we are faced with a browser that takes advantage of the popularity of the project with which it started, as is the case with the DuckDuckGo browser.

Bonus track: Go-go Navigators

The truth is that while we’ve selected seven particularly noteworthy privacy developments, there are other offerings that remain interesting and that could certainly provide assurance through add-ons or proprietary development.

However, some market participants may be surprised by the absence of some market participants from the list of highlights. Chrome is certainly not the most recommended option in this area – although again extensions can help – and the same goes for Edge or Opera: all these browsers have advantages in other areas, but not so much if we want to protect ourselves from data collection.

There are several lesser-known alternatives in this area. Aloha, for example, is a browser with some (perhaps too much) value in its cryptocurrency capabilities, but it has a built-in free VPN and a built-in ad blocker.

There’s also Midori, a minimalist browser that also provides a VPN (with a waitlist for now) and promises to block most ads appearing on websites.

Finally, on desktop browsers, it’s interesting to mention Mullvad, an open source project that is a recent fork of the Tor Project, highly rated on PrivacyTests.org. Its creators recommend combining it with a VPN and essentially providing this service as a payment method for anyone who wants to take advantage of this alternative.

We’ve focused on desktop browsers, but many of our main characters They have mobile versions on both iOS and Android. which work precisely by syncing with the desktop versions so that the whole experience benefits. However, there are browsers that are particularly focused on privacy in the mobile space. Bromite – a fork of chromium that looks a bit like Thor, and Mull – which, despite the name, does not seem to be related to Mullvad – are two of them.

Image | Defligra with Midjourney

In Genbet | I turned my back on Chrome a long time ago. These three alternatives are worth it and I like them better.