Welcome to our next topic where we will list six ways on how to browse the internet anonymously. It is no lie that nowadays the need for (internet) safety and privacy is emerging since cybercrime is all over. Therefore, in this next assignment related to the course of E Skills, i will take you through 6 ways that allow you to browse the internet anonymously. I will list them with a short clear informative background so you the reader or user can verify which option would work best for you when you want to browse the internet but also keep your privacy protected. Intrigued? Read on!
How did i solve this assignment?
First i thought about the methods and browsers i know and use personally as a ground rule for my research. Then i dived into the internet looking for alternative examples that could potentially surprise me and the reader to further provide us with online anonymity. I mainly used four sources of which i listed in the bibliography since most information displayed was in line with the information i found there.
Instructional video on how to browse the internet anonymously
Before reading my report and taking a look at the options i selected you also find a video about this topic.
(Linus Tech Tips, 2019)
Linus Tech Tips. (2019, August 20). How to Browse the Internet Anonymously. Retrieved from Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNp4OqdxHWI
1. VPN
I believe by now we all have heard of a VPN Network and how it enables us to browse the internet anonymously. Nevertheless I will give a bit more information on what a VPN does and how it offers us online anonymity. VPN stands for a virtual private network that allows you to browse from an IP address different from your own. Your connection also gets encrypted which gives the user of a VPN the possibility to not be tracked while browsing online. Why is this now anonymous? When we browse the internet everything we do and search can be traced back by an IP address linked to a specific location. With making use of a VPN that same IP address gets changed into a new one which can’t be linked back to the original user. Therefor it eliminates the possibility for app or website trackers to identify you visiting their website. There are options to use a free VPN or a paid VPN service all over the internet. The best thing is that setting up a VPN requires minimal effort and still allows you to benefit from internet anonymity while using it.
2. Private browsing mode
Most If not every web browser offers a private search mode for google this is for instance the incognito mode. When you select this option you are able to browse the internet just the same as you normally would except for one difference, you are browsing (more) anonymous. By using this option you are ensuring that your browsing history, cookies and temporary files are not kept. One noticeably difference by for instance using the VPN, is that an incognito or private browsing option does not provide complete anonymity. Your service provider can still see what you have been searching for instance. It is more to protect your search history, cookies etc. from getting seen or fond by other users on that same device. Activities that are still going to be seen by the websites, employer or school (when using a public device) or as mentioned for your internet service provider.
3. Anonymous search engine
Even better than our example mentioned above is a anonymous search engine. These types of browsers allow the users to freely browse the internet without being traced or tracked. How does this work? When I for instance use an anonymous search engine and look for; “plants and water’ the keywords I enter or results I decide to open will not be linked back to me in any way. It also provides safety and anonymity towards the end website because they also won’t be able to know how you arrived at their website. A well known example of this type of engine is DuckDuckGo. You can compare it to Google but DuckDuckGo is more limited which means that the search results will be a bit less than if you were to browse on Google. It all depends on where the user’s focus is and what is more important. If you choose for anonymity you opt for this browser. If you however do not care about it that much you just stick with google. Because browsers like DuckDuckGo also do not keep any information about user preferences everyone gets to see the same results when typing in the same search term unlike google who tracks user preferences and adjusts search results. By this you can rest assured that this is a safe option when talking about browsing the internet anonymously.
4. Encrypted messaging
When you want your online data to be kept private there is a high likelihood that you will want to keep your messages and emails private as well. Examples of this are Proton VPN or Proton Mail. They are service providers who offer the same anonymity security as with a regular VPN system but then focused on encrypting text messages and email data. This way you have the freedom to send what you want and receive what you want without being tracked and you keep your anonymity which for instance isn’t the case if you choose for operators such as Facebook. In WhatsApp you have a similar option. There you can choose to keep your messages end-to-end encrypted. What this does is it keeps your personal messages and calls between you and the person involved. WhatsApp cannot read or listen to your conversations or see any of the videos, pictures or locations you decide to share.
5. Use an elite proxy Server
An anonymous proxy server is similar to a VPN. It offers the possibility to hide your own user profile and location or computer IP address so that it cannot be identified, breached or used by others. A proxy server enables users to freely browse the internet while hiding their own identity. It is important that for full anonymity the user goes for at least an anonymous proxy server and If you prefer full anonymity for a elite proxy server. The first one will replace your IP address but the website will also be informed that this user is using a proxy service which could mean that you are getting banned from seeing certain information. With an elite proxy you get the full package. All your information gets hidden. This type of proxy server completely hide all your information that can be used to generate a user profile. Websites therefor have it really difficult to detect your presence or make any restriction to your access. An example of such service providers is Smartproxy. This service removes your IP address in the request header and the user connection is shown just like a regular device to ensure maximum anonymity and service.
6. TOR Browser
Tor browsing is a concept of The Tor Project, Inc. A nonprofit organization founded in 2006, but the concept of "onion routing" started in the mid-1990s. The goal was to create a way for internet users to access the web privately and without censorship. Tor routes internet traffic through multiple servers and encrypts it at each step to maximize privacy. This browser operates the same way a VPN does and also eliminates cookies and every other traceability back to the user. To put it short downloading this application ensures you that your digital fingerprint does not get disclosed and you can freely browse the internet anonymously. The only downside is that this browser is much slower/limited to gaming options for instance than for instance Google or Safari.
Bibliography
Aliza Vigderman, G. T. (2023, May 15). Anonymity. Retrieved from Security.org: https://www.security.org/vpn/anonymity/
DuckDuckGo. (2023). About. Retrieved from DuckDuckGo: https://duckduckgo.com/about
smartproxy.com. (2022, March 3). What is an anonymous Proxy. Retrieved from SmartProxy: https://smartproxy.com/blog/what-is-an-anonymous-proxy
Tor. (n.d.). About Tor History. Retrieved from Tor Project: https://www.torproject.org/about/history/
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