Everywhere you look online, it seems that there's someone trying to track you. Whether it is the government, private corporations, or even an individual who wants to learn more about you for whatever nefarious purpose, your privacy can seem threatened each time you go online. Here are four simple ways to maintain your privacy:
1) Use a Private Search - Many search engines track your searches and activity; however, there are some that promise to maintain your privacy. Sites like Startpage and DuckDuckGo will allow you to search the internet without being tracked.
2) Install HTTPS Everywhere - The HTTPS protocol will encrypt your data, making it unreadable to anyone trying to snoop on it. HTTPS Everywhere will force websites to encrypt data if they are able to encrypt it. (Some websites do not use encryption, and many more are capable but do not use it by default or only use it on certain parts of the site.) HTTPS Everywhere is available for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera.
3) Use Private Browsing Mode - All of the major browsers have a private mode. This mode will keep any sites from appearing in your search history, but more importantly, it will block websites from installing cookies. These cookies can monitor all your activity and transmit to other sites or use it to serve ads to you. If you don't want to use private mode, then cleaning your browser history and cookies on a regular basis will have a similar effect.
4) Pay in Cash - Purchases made with your credit or debit card can be tracked back to you using the card number. If the government wanted to track your purchases, they could track everything you have bought using your card numbers. (While the government could not forcibly take a store's records without a warrant, there is nothing to prohibit collecting them from companies that voluntarily hand them over.) If you want your purchases to stay private, pay in cash.
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