Staying Private Online in 2024

Browser security and privacy settings are crucial because they safeguard your personal information and browsing habits from unauthorized access and tracking. These settings and privacy-oriented plugins work as barriers, preventing cyber threats like malware, phishing attacks, and identity theft.

They also help control the amount of personal data that websites can collect and share about you, reducing unwanted ads and potentially intrusive surveillance of your online activities. Turning on these settings and using privacy-focused plugins are simple yet effective steps everyone should take to enhance their online privacy and security, ensuring a safer and more secure browsing experience.

Privacy Settings for Chrome

While Google’s chrome is the most popular browser, it has faced criticism due to high resource utilization and more importantly, dubious privacy standards and a recent privacy lawsuit. We recommend using Firefox as your default browser instead. If you must use chrome, here are some of the settings and plugins that should help improve your privacy.

Chrome Privacy Plugins to Install

uBlock Origin

Chrome Web Store URL : uBlock Origin

A highly effective ad blocker that also blocks trackers. It’s lightweight and doesn’t significantly impact browser performance, making it an essential tool for privacy-conscious users.

Privacy Badger

Chrome Web Store URL : Privacy Badger

Developed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Privacy Badger automatically learns to block invisible trackers and controls tracking cookies, enhancing your privacy as you browse.

DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Chrome Web Store URL : DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Provides built-in tracker blocking, smarter encryption, and a private search engine. It offers a privacy score for websites you visit and forces them to use encrypted connections when available.

Decentraleyes

Chrome Web Store URL : Decentraleyes

Protects against tracking through “free,” centralized content delivery. It blocks requests to external servers for content and serves local files to prevent many requests from reaching networks like Google Hosted Libraries.

Cookie AutoDelete

Chrome Web Store URL : Cookie AutoDelete

Automatically removes cookies that are no longer needed from your browser. It allows you to keep cookies for sites you trust while deleting cookies from sites you don’t, immediately after closing the tab.

Chrome Browser Privacy Settings

Use Incognito Mode

While the lawsuit (now settled) originated due to privacy concerns with Google Chrome’s Incognito Mode, and the terms of the settlement have not been disclosed, a continuous watch on what data Google collects in Incognito Mode might be subject to their terms on Chrome.

The Incognito Mode may still be a better option to preserve privacy with other websites that you visit.

Control Site Permissions

Go to Settings > Privacy and security >Site settings

Review the sites that collect/use data on your Location, Camera, Mic, Notifications and other Additional permissions.

Site Browsing and Cookie and Data

In Settings > Privacy and security > Clear browsing data

Review each site and the kind of data it gathers on you. Delete data for websites that you do not plan on visiting or if a particular site data looks suspicious.

Block Third-party Cookies

In Settings > Privacy and security > Third-party cookies

This can prevent trackers from collecting data about your browsing activity across multiple sites.

Secure DNS & Connections

In Settings > Privacy and security > Security

Turn on “Always use secure connections” to use HTTPS whenever possible and also enable “Encrypt the names of sites you visit” so that the DNS calls are secure to prevent people from watching which sites you visit.

Privacy Settings for Firefox

We strongly recommend using the Firefox browser because of it’s strong privacy policies and great privacy settings. Here are our picks for privacy-focused Firefox plugins and browsing settings.

Firefox Privacy Plugins to Install

Firefox Add-Ons store features a wide variety of plugins. Here are some of our recommendations on plugins that are privacy oriented.

uBlock Origin

Mozilla Addons Store URL : uBlock Origin

A powerful, efficient ad blocker that also blocks trackers. Its lightweight and easy to use, allowing you to maintain privacy without sacrificing performance.

Privacy Badger

Mozilla Addons Store URL : Privacy Badger

Developed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), this plugin automatically learns to block invisible trackers and control tracking cookies, improving your privacy as you browse.

Decentraleyes

Mozilla Addons Store URL : Decentraleyes

Protects you against tracking through “free,” centralized, content delivery. It prevents a lot of requests from reaching networks like Google Hosted Libraries, serving local files to keep you safe.

NoScript Security Suite

Mozilla Addons Store URL : NoScript Security Suite

Allows JavaScript, Java, Flash, and other plugins to be executed only by trusted web sites of your choice. It’s a powerful tool for advanced users to prevent clickjacking and other attacks.

DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Mozilla Addons Store URL : DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Offers built-in tracker blocking, smarter encryption, and a private search engine. It provides a privacy score for websites and forces them to use encrypted connections when available.

Firefox Browser Privacy Settings

There are several settings that we recommend to boost your online privacy with Firefox.

Enable Enhanced Tracking Protection

Go to Settings > Privacy & Security to view options on how you set options for trackers, cryptominers and fingerprinters. We recommend setting this to Strict.

Disable Telemetry

Prevent Firefox from sending technical and interaction data to Mozilla by going into Settings > Privacy & Security and unchecking the boxes under the Firefox Data Collection and Use section.

HTTPS-Only Mode

Once again in Settings > Privacy & Security, enable HTTPS-Only Mode in all windows for secure encryption between your browser and websites.

Adjust Cookies and Site Data

In Settings > Privacy & Security, click on “Manage Data” and review what Cookie and Site Data has been stored on your browser. Remove and clear data from sites that you do not use or if it looks suspicious.

More Options in about:config

Tweaking advanced options by accessing the “about:config” page in Firefox (you may see a warning when you do so) :

Be careful on what preferences you set here. Some privacy oriented preferences are :

privacy.firstparty.isolate

Set to true to isolate all browser identifier sources (such as cookies) to the first party domain, enhancing privacy.

network.cookie.cookieBehavior

Set to 1 or 4 to block third-party cookies or cross-site and social media trackers, respectively.

privacy.resistFingerprinting

Set to true to make your browser more resistant to fingerprinting, although it might break some websites.

Use Private Windows

Private browsing via private windows in Firefox. Firefox will delete all of your session data when you close the browser after browsing with private windows.

Privacy Settings for Safari

While Safari is limited to the Apple ecosystem, it is more secure and privacy-friendly than Chrome and has a much better track record of being transparent than Google.

To add more privacy features to your browsing experience on Safari, try adding these plugins…

AdGuard for Safari

Offers comprehensive ad-blocking capabilities, including ads, trackers, phishing, and malware sites. It also helps in speeding up page loading times and protecting your privacy.

DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Provides site encryption, tracker blocking, and a private search engine. Although its full suite may not be available on Safari as on other browsers, its core features still significantly enhance privacy.

1Blocker

Allows you to block ads, trackers, and other unwanted content. It’s highly customizable, letting users choose what gets blocked.

Safari Browser Privacy Settings

Prevent Cross-Site Tracking

Safari’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention helps reduce cross-site tracking by limiting cookies and other data. Enable this by going to Safari > Preferences > Privacy and checking “Prevent cross-site tracking.”

Block All Cookies

While this setting might be too restrictive for some users as it can prevent some sites from working correctly, you can enable it in the same Privacy tab by selecting “Block all cookies.” A more balanced approach would be to manage cookies and website data manually from this section.

Use Private Browsing Windows

Similar to other browsers’ private or incognito modes, Safari’s private browsing windows don’t save your browsing history, and they ask websites not to track you.

Enable Fraudulent Website Warning

Safari can warn you about suspicious websites that might try to phish for your information. This setting is available under Safari > Preferences > Security by checking “Warn when visiting a fraudulent website.”

Manage Website Data and Permissions

You can control which sites have access to your location, camera, microphone, and notifications. Manage these permissions in Safari > Preferences > Websites, and adjust settings for individual websites.

Privacy Settings for Edge

Edge Privacy Plugins to Install

uBlock Origin

Edge Add-ons URL : uBlock Origin

A powerful ad blocker that goes beyond simple ad blocking by also preventing trackers from loading. It’s lightweight and efficient at blocking unwanted content and trackers.

Privacy Badger

Edge Add-ons URL : Privacy Badger

Automatically learns to block invisible trackers and control which sites can collect your data. It’s developed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and aims to enforce the Do Not Track standard.

DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Edge Add-ons URL : DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Provides a privacy score for websites, blocks tracking cookies, and forces an encrypted connection where possible. It also includes a private search engine.

Decentraleyes

Edge Add-ons URL : Decentraleyes

Protects you against tracking through “free”, centralized, content delivery. It prevents many requests from reaching networks like Google Hosted Libraries, and serves local files to keep sites from breaking.

Cookie AutoDelete

Edge Add-ons URL : Cookie AutoDelete

Automatically removes cookies that are no longer used by open browser tabs. You have control over which cookies are deleted, making it a powerful tool for managing your digital footprint.

Edge Browser Privacy Settings

Tracking Prevention

In Settings > Privacy, search and services, set Tracking Prevention to Strict.

Edge offers built-in tracking prevention. Set it to “Strict” to block a majority of trackers from all sites, which might make some sites behave unexpectedly but maximizes privacy.

Send “Do Not Track” Requests

Enable this setting to send a Do Not Track (DNT) request with your browsing traffic. However, compliance with DNT requests is voluntary for websites.

Clear Browsing Data on Exit

Configure Edge to automatically clear your browsing history, cookies, and cache each time you close the browser. This helps in minimizing the amount of data stored on your computer.

Use secure DNS

Using Secure DNS in privacy settings encrypts DNS queries, preventing others from seeing which websites you visit and enhancing your overall online privacy.

Review site permissions

Regularly review and customize site permissions to control what data sites can access, including location, camera, microphone, and notifications.

Common Tips

1. Regularly clear your browsing history and website data.
2. Update your operating system, browser and browser extensions/add-ons regularly

With these plugins and privacy settings in your arsenal, you’re you would be better equipped to navigate the digital world safely and keep your online activities private. Remember, taking these small steps can make a big difference in protecting your personal information.

And for an extra layer of security, consider using PicKey.ai to keep your passwords and login details safe and secure, making your journey towards online privacy and security even more robust.