Best Internet Browser for Internet Privacy

firefox-on-chrome

You might think that your internet browser is an integral link to how secure your online privacy is. After all, it’s where your traffic is placed, seen, and how you interact with the web itself. However, the best browsers have evolved and morphed into considerably safe products over time that you should feel secure using. That said, are there any underlying differences that could sway you to one side?

Google Chrome

Best Internet Browser for Internet Privacy

Ah yes, Google–the mega company that is slowly taking over the world (you too Amazon). Many people only hate it because it’s gotten so big. In many ways, it is quite big, as Google does have a huge focus on online ad targeting as well have multiple services that collect your data regardless of which browser you use (Google Docs, Gmail, YouTube, etc.). Other privacy skeptics like the Electronic Frontier Foundation think that it’s been jeopardized by the NSA.

Given that, Google does care about privacy, even if they have their goals as a company. They have a background fighting for internet privacy, internet transparency, and against governments that want to collect data. But, keep in mind, that doesn’t always mean that they win–however. Google has bent to the European Union to allows search results to be censored in Europe.

Google’s reputation aside, Chrome can track information on your use, but it depends on which add-ons and functionalities you use. The primary infrastructure is open source.

If you use voice search, grammar settings, usage statistics, and bug reporting enabled, you are sending information on over to Google. However, while it’s not known exactly how long Google stores this information permanently, or how easy it would be for them to use that information to identify someone, you can rest assured that the data is encrypted.

Mozilla Firefox

Best Internet Browser for Internet Privacy While Google Chrome has a poor reputation for online privacy, many people hold FireFox has the holy grail of privacy for internet browsers. It’s open source, and the company doesn’t have any ulterior motives like Google (whether they are harmless or not) to collect your data for advertising.

Their privacy policy explains each amount of collection used which mainly includes services like browser syncing, add-ons, and usage statistics. Sounds similar to Chrome no?

Firefox’s main strength is it’s open source design which lets users sift through the code as they will. This transparency leads to reported issues, bug fixes, and open API’s that give developers more control over add-ons that protect user privacy.

Here are some good tips to increasing your privacy with Firefox.

Bottom line:

Chrome is one of the most popular browsers for a reason. Its extensive extension library, fast performance, unique tab features, and extended platform availability can come at a cost of privacy if you take advantage of their extended features. Coupled with their slant towards advertising, you might be better off staying away.

Mozilla Firefox might collect just the same amount of data in the same ways, and on paper–both companies behind the browsers claim that they don’t use the data in any way that would concern privacy. But their non-profit model does give them some more leverage in the world of privacy.

In the end, both browsers have tools that can help protect your privacy like incognito mode or private browsing in Firefox.  However, the companies behind the browsers are pretty different, so you might want to take that into consideration if you find the browsing experiences similar.

If you need help getting a browser to work, or just have questions about VPNs, come on over to our forums. 

 

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