Since web browsers are a natural part of our day-to-day lives, it’s important to use the right one.
And by right one, I mean a browser that doesn’t put your privacy in danger by exposing you to risky extensions, shady advertisers, and data leaks or breaches.
Usually, the most mainstream ones are guilty of doing that.
Don’t believe me?
Just keep on reading.
3 Popular Browsers That Are Not Privacy-Friendly At All
You have more than likely heard about them, and used them or continue to use them regularly. Unfortunately, doing that means putting your data and privacy at risk.
Let’s get started:
1. Google Chrome
Google? Not privacy-friendly?
Hardly surprising for many of you, yet some of you probably still use it – along with millions (if not billions) of other people.
Well, it’s not a shock that Google doesn’t handle user privacy well, but just how bad is their web browser?
Get this – according to experts, it’s pretty much spy software at this point. Every single time you run Google Chrome, you have to deal with:
- Up to 11,000 tracker cookies violating your privacy.
- The browser collecting data about you from any third party apps you use which – in turn – rely on Google services.
- Google Chrome keeping a log of your location history – even if you turn off your phone!
- Having your browser’s fingerprint automatically associated to website visits on any page that uses Google Analytics.
- Advertisers potentially having access to personal data about you through hidden web pages.
All in all, it’s shady stuff. Not very unexpected of a company that used to scan your Gmail messages to find content which they can sell to advertisers, though. Oh, and Google is also part of the PRISM surveillance program.
2. Safari
Weird addition, I know. After all, Apple has a pretty decent Privacy Policy, and their web browser even helps you keep advertisers off your digital trail.
But that’s mostly just for show.
In reality, Safari has a lot of problems that endanger your privacy and security.
For starters, just like Google, Apple is also part of the NSA’s surveillance program. That means NSA agents can get their hands on your Safari files – audio recordings, photos, emails, and videos.
Even though Apple boasted about the browser’s Private Mode that supposedly makes everything less traceable, the feature was actually found to collect users’ browsing history.
Furthermore, in 2017, it came to light that Apple actually saved tons of Safari browsing history data – despite the fact that users deleted it.
And lawsuit revealed that Apple sold iTunes listening data to advertisers. So, I wouldn’t say it’s okay to trust that they wouldn’t do the same with your Safari data.
What’s scary is that it seems Apple’s approach to privacy isn’t the same all around the world. For example, in China, Safari actually sends Chinese users’ data to Tencent – a huge Chinese company that not only owns some of the country’s largest digital platforms, but is also very censorship-friendly.
3. Opera
You’d think Opera would be a great choice for privacy, but that’s really not the case anymore. I mean sure, the browser started out as a good privacy-friendly alternative to Google Chrome, but it quickly turned into your average browser that just makes money off of your privacy.
Just take a look at Opera’s Privacy Policy – it clearly says that the browser uses third-party code, and it shares your data with Google.
But that’s not the worst part. The biggest issue with Opera is who owns it.
Right now, it’s a huge Chinese consortium led by Qihoo 360 that bought Opera from the original devs for $600 million.
That’s not even the shadiest bit, though. Qihoo 360, a security agency, was previously accused of stealing personal data from hundreds of millions of its users with the use of illegal software that acts as a backdoor in its products.
Back in 2017, Qihoo 360 was also accused of violating public privacy through its live broadcast services and smart cameras.
And it recently came to light that a lot of pre-installed apps on Samsung phones actually act as spyware for Qihoo 360, sending device and user data to their servers.
All in all, it’s really not a trustworthy company – and definitely not one whose browser you should use if you value your privacy.
What Defines a “Secure” Web Browser?
What exactly sets a good, reliable web browser apart from the ones I mentioned above?
Just saying it’s “secure” isn’t very helpful. So, here are the kinds of features, policies, and services that separate the privacy-friendly browsers from the risky ones:
- Built-in protection from phishing websites;
- The opportunity to enable non-tracking options;
- Open-source code, preferably;
- Clear Privacy Policies that make it clear your data won’t be sold;
- Limited to no logging;
- Browser fingerprinting protection;
- The ability to automatically block harmful scripts and plugins (like Flash and RealPlayer);
- HTTPS Everywhere functionality;
- Top-notch WebRTC leak protection;
- Built-in password managers.
The list can go on and on, but what I mentioned should be enough to help you get an idea of how really secure browsers protect you online compared to run-of-the-mill ones.
Need Help Finding One?
There are actually quite a lot of decent web browsers to choose from. Researching, testing, and comparing them all can be tiresome, though.
I personally spent two hours reading up on Brave and Firefox before I even installed them to test them out. Even then, I still wasn’t 100% sure which one to use.
Luckily, I came across this extremely helpful guide of Internet browsers that don’t skimp on privacy at all. It has all the info you need to make a smart decision, and the format is very easy to scan and read through even if you’re in a hurry.
