Best web browsers for security and privacy

On the Internet you should not run, but walk... Very quietly take every step, so that not a single floorboard creaks underfoot. And do not agree to the collection of cookies under any circumstances. Otherwise, you will be tracked down and harassed, harassed with targeted advertising and relevant search results. Of course, it's not scary… But it can lead to a complete loss of privacy, followed by the theft of data, and even funds. And the reason for such a sad outcome lies in the wrong browser for Internet surfing.

Every user wandering the World Wide Web, no matter how hard he tries, still leaves traces… Although who prevents us from boldly walking on the Internet without fear and without being afraid of being tracked down? Who needs these prints? After all, this is a virtual space, free from... privacy!

Nowadays, user information is valued at its weight in gold. Therefore, there were a lot of people who wanted to peek. And not all of them track your actions out of mere curiosity. After all, there are few people among the watchers, and there are more and more services and platforms. But why do they need this data?

Who steals confidential user information and how?

Have you heard the proverb about free cheese in a mousetrap? In the privacy situation that has developed on the Web, users are in the role of mice ... Which, in the thirst to get a tool for Internet surfing for free, fall into a trap. And it closes immediately after the user enters the URL into the browser's address bar. At this point, his online privacy comes to an end. Why:

• While visiting the site, a small amount of data is stored on the user's device – cookies that contain information about the session. And on the next visit, the user receives a personalized version of the web page. But in practice, along with the new cookies, the server can send third-party trackers.
• The aggregated data ends up in the databases of analytical platforms, which sell it to a third party. At best, the information will fall into the hands of the advertising network, which uses it to target the broadcast ads. At worst, to intruders. Then you can become a victim of phishing and lose the payment attributes of bank cards... And, as a consequence, their contents.

And all these information thefts are committed with the help of browsers and with the tacit consent of their developers. Moreover, the companies that publish this software themselves profit from the violation of user privacy. And they also use the collected statistics for their own selfish purposes.

The world's most popular browser, Chrome, is owned by Google. With its help, the company tracks the actions of users. The aggregated analytics are then used to target ads aired through AdWords, a contextual advertising platform also owned by Google.

That's why the search engine works so hard on his browser, constantly updating its user functionality. And not because Google loves us all!

The era of fingerprints has come

In recent years, more and more non-profit organizations have begun to speak out against third-party cookies. Their use is even going to be banned at the legislative level in some European countries. But this way the problem of privacy on the Internet will not be solved. Because there is a new, even more modern technology – digital prints. They provide 90% accuracy of user identification on the Internet. To do this, fingerprints take a comprehensive approach. The definition of "personality" is carried out by a variety of attributes, the combination of which forms a unique trace that is specific to a particular user. Such signals include:

• Technical characteristics of the device - software, its bit rate, CPU clock frequency, amount of RAM, etc.
• Local settings – language, time zone.
• Device data sent by the browser via User-Agent.

As you can see, even after banning the use of third-party cookies, the problem of privacy in browsers will not be solved. Since user identification on the World Wide Web can be successfully carried out without them. And in this case, neither VPN services nor proxies will help.

These services only allow you to bypass blocking and view sites that are banned in a particular country. In this case, only the IP of the device is substituted, and they can not replace the other parameters that are part of the fingerprint.

But perhaps there are browsers that provide more anonymous Internet surfing. After all, not all software publishers pursue only commercial interest. To find out, let's plunge into the world of modern Internet browsers and choose the most worthy ones among them.

The most confidential browsers of our time

1. Opera

A modern browser originally published by a non-profit organization. The program is implemented in versions for popular desktop and mobile platforms. Comfortable browsing is ensured thanks to the built-in ad blocker, which increases the download speed by more than 90%. In addition, Opera includes a simple VPN that allows you to visit any site or platform.

But despite the presence of several privacy tools in the functionality of the browser, it cannot be called the most secure Internet browser. In 2016, Opera was acquired by a Chinese IT company. After that, the browser began to actively collect impersonal data about its users. That is, without reference to the identity of the person.

2. Firefox

The history of Firefox began in 2002. The browser changed the engine several times. Right now it is using Quantum. Unlike Opera, this browser collects much less information about users.

In addition, Firefox includes several tools to protect user privacy and personal data:

• Built-in blocker of third-party cookies.
• Protection against automatic playback of videos published on web pages.
• Social network tracker blocker.

But having these tools does not guarantee anonymous surfing. In addition, Firefox does not have a built-in VPN. Therefore, you cannot use it to visit blocked sites.

3. Brave

A relatively young browser produced by a non-profit organization. The first issue of the program was released in 2016. Its main difference is a clear emphasis on user security. The browser uses several tools to provide it:

• Ad blocker.
• Incognito mode.
• Built-in VPN service.
• Anonymous network routing.
• Protection against digital fingerprinting.

The functionality of Brave's security features is much wider than in the previously mentioned browsers. Nevertheless, even this arsenal does not guarantee complete anonymity of user activity on the Internet.

4. Tor

One of the most powerful solutions to ensure anonymity on the Web. The browser uses a non-standard data transfer mechanism. Tor uses the so-called "onion routing". It is a system of distributed proxy servers through which data is transmitted in encrypted form and without saving cookies. Which completely eliminates the possibility of tracking user actions and his identification through fingerprints. Because tracking systems do not receive enough information to identify the user's identity.

But due to multiple data transfers, the speed of the Internet connection drops. Which is especially critical when using a slow mobile network connection. As a result, the web pages of the sites will take a long time to load. This reduces the usability of Tor for everyday internet surfing.

5. Epic

The first version of the browser was released in 2010. Epic changed engines several times. Now it works on the basis of Chromium. It is implemented in versions for Windows, mac OS and Android. Features of Epic, which provide a high level of privacy:

• Local storage of site visit history.
• Automatic clearing of cookies.
• Blocker of third-party cookies and advertising trackers.
• Built-in proxy service that supports eight locations.
• Support for a limited set of browser extensions.

Epic is equipped with an impressive list of tools to protect user data. But it does not provide a comfortable visit to sites due to the lack of the possibility of using extensions. In addition, Epic does not have an automatic update function. Therefore, the new version of the program is downloaded manually by the user.

6. Ungoogled-chromium

A browser running on a pure Chromium engine without binding to Google services. This ensures that its advertising and analytics services will not be able to collect any data about you when you surf the sites.

In addition, the browser does not save browsing history and receives daily updates. But they are loaded manually. Therefore, this software option can only be considered as a safe alternative to the usual for many Chrome users.

7. Undetectable

A professional anti-detection browser that uses a different approach to ensuring privacy. Unlike other ranked browsers, Undetectable does not block third-party cookies and trackers, but performs fingerprint spoofing. This not only guarantees complete anonymity of user actions, but also allows to bypass all the locks. And also to carry out multiaccount access to any site. Including social networks, online stores and betting services. At the same time, Undetectable provides all the functionality necessary for this in the free version of the browser. What distinguishes Undetectable from other antidetects.

Antidetects are the key to complete anonymity

Our ranking shows the browsers that provide the highest level of privacy and security to users. Nevertheless, each of them has a number of disadvantages that reduce their effectiveness.

Antidetects use a different protection mechanism – by substituting fingerprints. Therefore, they are devoid of these flaws and are able not only to provide a high level of anonymity, but also to step over any type of blocking.

The only drawback of anonymous browsers is their high cost. But Undetectable is one of the few professional antidetects with a fully functional free subscription. Therefore, the choice is obvious!