Experts name the best browsers for privacy protection

The modern Internet can be extremely nosy: websites and services collect a huge amount of information about our activities. If you're concerned about your anonymity online, whether for personal security or because you don't want to share your search history with the world, choosing a trusted web browser is one of the easiest ways to minimize your risks.

Lifehacker writes about which browsers are the best for privacy protection.

Which browser is the best for protecting private information

The publication spoke with two privacy experts — William Budington and Janet Vertesi. They have different views on the best browser for privacy, but they agree on one thing: Google Chrome is definitely not the way to go if anonymity is important to you.

"There is no perfect choice here in the array of browsers that protect your privacy, but certainly Chrome is not one of them," — Budington notes.

Vertesi also argues that if you want anonymity, Chrome is not your choice.

Tor is maximum privacy with certain limitations

Tor was designed with anonymity in mind. It disables cookies, blocks browser fingerprints, and routes all traffic through at least three intermediaries. This makes Tor nearly impossible to track, but many sites simply won't work with it because they actively block Tor as a tool for DDoS attacks.

"Tor is probably the safest in that it's totally untraceable, but it's not usable for everything. You can't use Tor exclusively," Vertesi adds.

Experts advise using Tor when you really need to go unnoticed: for example, when looking for information about important or confidential medical issues.

Brave is a good out-of-the-box option, but with its own nuances

Brave is built on Chromium with a focus on privacy. It offers built-in ad and tracker blocking, browser fingerprint masking, and other useful features for safe browsing. Although there is some debate about the developer from time to time, both experts agree that Brave is a good solution.

"It's clear that they are taking reasonable and good steps in order to protect users' privacy, particularly the length Brave goes in order to randomize your browser's fingerprint," emphasizes Budington.

Based on Chromium, Brave provides compatibility with sites that may not open in Firefox or due to Tor's advanced settings. Vertesi also finds Brave to be a convenient option when "Chrome compatibility" is required.

Firefox — powerful privacy tools with the right extensions

The well-known Firefox remains a serious competitor in data protection — especially if you're willing to put in the extra time to customize it.

"With the right add-ons installed, Firefox can be just as private as Brave," says Budington.

He recommends installing Privacy Badger (developed by the EFF) and the uBlock Origin ad blocker. You can also enable additional levels of security in Firefox's internal settings.

As a reminder, users of browsers with ad blockers enabled notice a banner on YouTube warning them to disable such extensions. Google informs them that they violate the terms of service and suggests that they simply disable them or subscribe to YouTube Premium.

Opera has announced that browsers that can make purchases and book hotel rooms are already available. The company has released its artificial intelligence agent, which can perform tasks based on natural language requests, ensuring user privacy and control at all times.