Directory Image
This website uses cookies to improve user experience. By using our website you consent to all cookies in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

Why incognito mode in your browser is useless

Author: Pamela Patterson
by Pamela Patterson
Posted: Feb 27, 2020

If you want to ensure anonymity on the Internet, it is better to look for other options.

You must have used incognito mode, for example, to log in to several email accounts at the same time or view photos of cats at the workplace. Now, when your search and advertising bots are vigilantly watching your actions on the Internet, incognito mode seems to be a very tempting option. But in reality it does not provide privacy.

How incognito mode differs from normal

In incognito mode:

  • There is no record of viewing history;
  • Search queries are not saved;
  • Cookies are not saved;
  • No new passwords are recorded;
  • Temporary files and cached site content are not saved;
  • Form data on sites is not recorded.

As you can see, the list is long. But incognito mode protects only a small part of your data. Google and Mozilla honestly warn about this in their browsers. Chrome users receive a notification when they start incognito mode.

Why incognito mode is unsafe

Firstly, even if the incognito mode does not record the sites you visit in your browser history, this data can be tracked using your IP address, as opposed to using VeePN vpn chrome extension. Thus, your Internet provider, the administrator of your local network at work, the owner of a Wi-Fi point in a cafe and generally anyone who can track your IP address can find out which sites you visit.

Secondly, if you log in to your Google, Facebook, Twitter, or some other account, your activity, including search queries and pages viewed on these sites, will also be recorded. This is obvious, but as DuckDuckGo polls show, not for everyone.

In addition, if you enter your credentials into some Chrome web application, the browser will again begin to record your cookies.

How browser identification occurs

There is an identification technique that Google is actively using. Search engines create the so-called "browser fingerprint". Even if you do not use accounts and cookies, sites can still identify your browser using information such as:

  • Browser Headers (User Agent, HTTP, ACCEPT, Do Not Track);
  • Screen options;
  • Browser extensions installed;
  • Operating system time zone;
  • OS version and system language;
  • Size and settings of your fonts.

And the list is far from complete. Thus, search engines create a kind of "portrait" of the user, to one degree or another unique.

What provides true privacy

By and large, all these tricks of search engines aimed at advertising targeting do not really bother users. However, in some cases, getting rid of such annoying attention can be useful.

For example, you intend to purchase a gift for your spouse and are looking incognito for suitable options in online stores. After some time, the spouse launches the browser in normal mode and sees a bunch of ads with offers to buy smartphones and jewelry. This is annoying and can ruin a surprise.

Therefore, draw your own conclusions, for which you are incognito, if you want complete privacy, then use more thoughtful services for this.

About the Author

In life, we want to be protected, and to neglect this on the Internet is stupid, that's why I use a href=“https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/veepn-unlimited-free-fast/majdfhpaihoncoakbjgbdhglocklcgno?hl=en”VeePN vpn

Rate this Article
Leave a Comment
Author Thumbnail
I Agree:
Comment 
Pictures
Author: Pamela Patterson

Pamela Patterson

Member since: Feb 24, 2020
Published articles: 1

Related Articles