162 lines
5.2 KiB
Markdown
162 lines
5.2 KiB
Markdown
# Browser Privacy Basics
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---
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### 1. Goal
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This guide is for reducing everyday tracking, cleaning up browser habits, and avoiding common privacy traps. It is not about becoming anonymous against every possible adversary.
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Good browser privacy comes from a few boring habits:
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* use a browser that respects your settings;
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* limit extensions;
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* block common trackers;
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* separate accounts and identities;
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* avoid leaking personal information into every site you visit.
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---
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### 2. Pick a Browser Setup
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Use one main browser for normal browsing and a second isolated browser for accounts that should not mix.
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Recommended split:
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* **Daily browser:** general web use, searches, reading, shopping, and casual logins.
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* **Private/account browser:** banking, email, admin panels, school, work, or anything tied to your real identity.
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* **Throwaway/private window:** one-off links, unknown sites, and pages you do not plan to revisit.
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Avoid signing into a browser sync account unless you actually need synced bookmarks and history. Browser sync is convenient, but it also centralizes a lot of personal data.
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---
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### 3. Recommended Apps
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Use a small, boring tool stack.
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* **Firefox:** best fit if you want profiles, containers, strong extension support, and a browser that is not built around an ad network.
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* **Firefox Multi-Account Containers:** good for separating banking, shopping, social media, admin panels, and throwaway accounts without needing five browsers.
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* **Brave:** good for people who want a Chromium-based browser with built-in ad and tracker blocking. Turn off Brave Rewards if you do not want browser ads or crypto features.
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* **Mullvad Browser:** good for higher-privacy sessions where fingerprinting resistance matters more than convenience. Do not add a bunch of extensions to it.
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* **Tor Browser:** use when anonymity or censorship resistance matters. Do not torrent through Tor, and do not add extra extensions.
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* **uBlock Origin:** the default content blocker recommendation for Firefox and other supported browsers.
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* **Bitwarden:** easiest password manager recommendation for most people who want sync across devices.
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* **KeePassXC:** best fit if you want an offline local password vault instead of cloud sync.
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Official links:
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* Firefox Multi-Account Containers: `https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/containers`
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* Brave: `https://brave.com`
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* Mullvad Browser: `https://mullvad.net/en/browser`
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* Tor Browser: `https://www.torproject.org/download/`
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* uBlock Origin: `https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock`
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* Bitwarden: `https://bitwarden.com`
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* KeePassXC: `https://keepassxc.org`
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---
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### 4. Extension Rules
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Extensions can see a lot. Keep them minimal.
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Good baseline:
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* one trusted content blocker;
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* one password manager extension if you use one;
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* no coupon extensions;
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* no random video downloaders;
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* no "AI helper" extensions with broad page access;
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* no duplicate privacy extensions fighting each other.
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Remove anything you do not actively use. A stale extension with broad permissions is not harmless.
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---
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### 5. Browser Settings to Check
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Review these settings in every browser you use:
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* block third-party cookies where possible;
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* disable ad personalization;
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* disable search and URL suggestions if you do not want typed text sent to the provider;
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* disable automatic sign-in;
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* disable background apps after closing the browser;
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* clear site permissions for camera, microphone, location, notifications, and clipboard;
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* require confirmation before downloads open automatically.
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Notifications are especially worth locking down. Most websites do not need notification access.
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---
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### 6. Identity Separation
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Do not use one browser profile for everything.
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Separate these when possible:
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* real-name accounts;
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* personal email;
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* admin dashboards;
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* shopping;
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* social media;
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* throwaway accounts;
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* research or unknown links.
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The goal is not perfection. The goal is to stop every site, cookie, extension, and login from living in the same bucket.
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---
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### 7. Practical Profiles
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A simple profile layout:
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```text
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Default/
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normal browsing, news, searches, casual accounts
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Personal/
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email, banking, medical, school, work
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Admin/
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server dashboards, DNS, hosting, domain registrar
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Disposable/
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unknown links, one-off accounts, testing
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```
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Rules:
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* do not save payment methods in the disposable profile;
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* do not use personal email in the disposable profile;
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* keep admin dashboards out of the daily browser;
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* use bookmarks for important login pages;
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* clear the disposable profile often.
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---
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### 8. Search and Links
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Privacy-friendly habits:
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* search from the address bar only if you trust that provider;
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* avoid clicking sponsored results;
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* check domains before logging in;
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* use bookmarks for important sites instead of search results;
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* be suspicious of shortened links when the destination matters.
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For sensitive accounts, type the domain manually or use a saved bookmark.
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---
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### 9. Quick Maintenance Routine
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Once a month:
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1. Remove unused extensions.
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2. Clear site permissions.
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3. Delete saved passwords from the browser if you use a dedicated password manager.
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4. Review downloaded files.
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5. Update the browser.
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6. Check that your content blocker is still enabled.
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Small maintenance beats trying to fix privacy after everything is already mixed together.
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