Top 7 Best Google Chrome Privacy Extensions
If you are looking for a privacy-focused browser, Google Chrome does not fit the bill. However, this guide will discuss the top seven best Google Chrome privacy extensions that you can use to improve your privacy while browsing in 2020.
DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials
Google knows the URLs and search terms that you are using because it reads and transmits what you type on the omnibar in real-time. Moreover, the browser records your browsing, download, and location history.
DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials can protect your privacy while browsing using Google Chrome. When you click on search results, the extension forces sites to use an encrypted connection when possible. Also, DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials blocks all hidden third-party advertising trackers and enables you to search privately.
The extension exposes trackers that have been tracking you and lets you know how much you can trust a site before and after implementing its privacy protection feature. Furthermore, DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials does not track your search history.
Ghostery
If you hate coming across ads as you scroll through websites, then Ghostery is a privacy extension to consider.
The extension finds the trackers on each website and gives you the power to control the ones that you do not want. The extension also blocks ads to declutter web pages while improving user experience.
With Ghostery, you can access insights on trackers and customize the trackers you want to block and when you want to block them.
Blur
Creating new strong passwords and remembering old ones is often a hassle. Blur, however, makes life easier with its password management feature.
While Chrome also offers a similar service, Blur goes a step further to provide secure payments and improved online privacy.
Blur uses AES-256 encryption to secure passwords and keys, it creates strong and unique encrypted passwords for every account, and it saves your passwords for fast logins. Additionally, Blur enables you to shop online with disposable credit cards, blocks tracking that does not use cookies, and prevents companies from collecting your online activity data.
Hotspot Shield
Hotspot Shield is another useful best Chrome privacy extension. This extension is a virtual private network (VPN) that provides enhanced security and privacy while surfing the internet.
When you are surfing without a VPN, websites and your internet service provider can see your IP address. Furthermore, you cannot access sites that have geographical restrictions. However, Hotspot Shield will hide your IP address allowing you to surf privately and it gives users access to restricted sites. Also, Hotspot Shield encrypts your browser traffic and gives users unlimited VPN access.
HTTPS Everywhere
Most websites have already moved to the more secure “HTTPS” protocol. However, other websites are still using “HTTP” and are therefore insecure to use.
HTTPS Everywhere automatically changes websites from “HTTP” to “HTTPS” to protect you from some forms of censorship, account hijacking, and surveillance.
Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) provides more security and privacy than HTTP as you surf the web. For instance, your internet service provider cannot see the specific pages of a site that you are visiting and they cannot tamper with web pages.
Click&Clean
As you browse the internet, you leave behind traces of your online activity that third-parties can use to track you and to collect your personal information. As a result, you should delete these traces frequently to stay safe. This is where Click&Clean comes in. This extension protects your privacy and security by enabling you to delete your browsing history, cookies, cache, download history, and typed URLs with one click.
The ability to constantly clean your digital traces protects you from cookie trackers, malware, adware, search hijackers, and personal data collection.
Click&Clean also scans your computer for malware, it cleans up your hard drives to free up space, and it erases all traces of your online activity.
Privacy Badger
Privacy Badger blocks all those invisible trackers that are tracking you while you browse. The web pages you visit are made up of content from different sources. For instance, a news media site could display ads from an ad company.
Privacy Badger keeps track of all these sources and if it appears that one of them is tracking you, it tells your browser to stop loading content from that source. When your browser stops loading that content, the source cannot track you.
Furthermore, Privacy Badger prevents outgoing link click tracking on sites like Google, Twitter, and Facebook. This service provides first-party privacy protection.
As long as you are surfing the internet, you should take online privacy seriously because privacy matters.