Using the wrong browser can lead to grave repercussions. You’ll never know where your info might end up. Everything about you – your likes, age, where you live, and all other private data – will be in the hands of the wrong people.
But your choice of a browser doesn’t just affect your privacy and personal data. Security breaches happen all the time and you wouldn’t want your passwords and especially banking data compromise.
It’s a good thing certain browsers help you protect your data. Using these browsers means that your browsing time is always safe. Read on to know more about the best browser for security and privacy.
The Dangers of Using the Wrong Browser
You’re risking quite a lot with the wrong browser, including accidentally navigating to malware-infected sites, losing your login details for different websites in the event of a breach, having your browsing history exploited by private companies.
Cookies, security breaches, and really long privacy agreements that no one really bothers to read are all part of the problem. Part of why you’re not anonymous online is because of cookies. When you visit a website that uses cookies, a tiny part of it is saved on your device. This file contains things that are your identifier on the site, your unique ID.
With this unique ID, your activity and personal information are already exposed. That’s how the internet knows which ads to target you — that’s all based on your online behavior.
But this isn’t just about the greed of eCommerce websites and big tech companies. The truth of the matter is, breaches can happen any time and anybody could be targeted by hackers. And sadly, the most popular browser ,Chrome , isn’t a safe place to store that data.
When surfing the web, privacy and security are serious matters to consider. That’s why we’ve compiled a list to help you choose the best browser for your privacy needs.
Epic Privacy Browser
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Epic Privacy Browser is a Chromium-based browser lauded for its strong privacy and security practices. All the things you do here are stored locally in your device and once you leave, your browsing activity is automatically deleted. All web trackers and ads are blocked too and none of your browsing activity is shared with third parties.
Only a small selection of pre-installed extensions are supported by the Epic Privacy Browser, which is good to see as many unsafe extensions track your device. The built-in proxy with servers in the US, Canada, France, Germany, India, and a few more nations is one of its most valuable extensions.
The only small issue I have is Epic Privacy Browser’s true open-source nature. Epic only allows you to access the files if you first email the team directly and provide your background information.
Ungoogled Chromium
Ungoogled Chromium is a Chromium-based browser originally started by Google, it is free and open-source software. It’s much more secure, though, and has no ties to the tech giant. In reality, Ungoogled Chromium has completely liberated itself (tools that recognize your IP address) from Google’s trackers and host detectors. None of the past of your surfing is logged or shared with third parties.
Ungoogled Chromium has regular updates to its software, unlike many browsers. This keeps the browser incredibly secure, as any known weaknesses are patched instantly. You would however have to manually upgrade the browser (there are no automated prompts or reminders). Make sure you always import fresh updates from the official website as a safety measure.
TOR
Tor is an extremely private browser. Short for The Onion Router, it has several security layers to shield your web activity. Your data flows through several volunteer “nodes” (individual computers that are part of the network) as you link to Tor. Tracing any data back to your computer is virtually impossible. Whether you’re a journalist, whistleblower, or doing sensitive research in a country with draconian internet rules, this makes Tor an outstanding browser.
Tor comes pre-installed with 2 extensions: HTTPS Everywhere (website security updates automatically) and NoScript (prevents running insecure applications such as JavaScript). I do not recommend that any new extensions be introduced as this may impact your privacy in unforeseen ways.
Unfortunately, Tor is quite slow as your data needs to jump through several nodes before it reaches the internet. I found it took up to 30 seconds to connect to a website.
Apple Safari
In terms of its privacy security, Apple Safari provides its own protected browser for Mac and iOS users, and it is very amazing. Every individual tab is “sandboxed,” which means that each tab is a browsing session that is self-contained. This compartmentalization means that all the other open tabs (and the browser as a whole will stay secure if an open tab is compromised with malware.
All data can be saved locally on your computer (not on the browser) and trackers, ads, and malware blockers can be enabled. I find it easy to identify and erase my browsing history and cookies, even though you choose to save data in the browser. There’s also a private browsing feature and an in-built password manager.
Safari only accepts browser plugins from the App Store, so make sure you’re cautious of your choices. Some of these plugins will track your behavior, so it is not always safeguarded for your data privacy.
Brave
Brave is a relative newcomer to the industry, but it comes with a number of powerful solutions for security and privacy. All your viewing history is saved on your computer locally, so you can erase it anytime you wish. Brave is unable to view or access all of your information at all.
You can also find ad blockers, trackers, and browser fingerprints (stops websites from recognizing your operating system and device). I really like its Private Windows feature, which connects you to Tor for greater anonymity right away.
Any consumers may be worried about the launch of advertisements (‘Brave Ads’) by Brave. Nevertheless, I see no big reason for alarm. Both invasive trackers are also natively disabled by the browser, so you will not be targeted by spyware disguised as advertisements. All ad matching happens directly on your computer, where your browsing history is stored, so you don’t share or send any of your private data to any third party.
Using Browsers The Safe Way
Staying secure and preserving your privacy on the net is a sustained endeavor at the beginning, but time makes things simpler. Happy browsing!