The Best Privacy Oriented Search Engines



What is a search engine and how is its privacy important?

A search engine is a web based tool, which is mainly accessible through the internet and provides the users with a list of results that matches their query.  The best example of a search engine is Google. Search engines are our modern day knights in shining armor. From helping kids solve homework, to letting people look for the nearest hospital and to helping you download your favorite songs - the search engine does it all. Google, is unquestionably the best search engine out there, so much so that the phrase “to google something” is synonymous to looking something up on the internet.
Let us talk about search engine privacy. Suppose you strike up a conversation with a stranger; you wouldn’t mind sharing your first name with him, but will sure as hell be hesitant to give him your address, bank details, or other personal information. Believe it or not, you need to be cautious while dishing out your personal information to search engines too. Well, search engines are not living and breathing humans, but they are still developed using algorithms that will keep track of every little detail you entered in their search section. Sounds scary, doesn’t it?

What is private browsing in search engines?

Most browsers have already kept the option of a private browsing open to its users. There are certain features like Google Chrome’s ‘Incognito’ mode, which claims to let the users browse the web privately. To use this mode, the user needs to open Google Chrome on their computers or smart phones, and select “New Incognito Window” (“New Incognito Tab” on smartphones) from the top right corner of the Chrome Window. This private browsing mode ensures that the searches you do and the sites you visit will not be saved on your device. It also deletes the cookies once your private browsing window is closed.
Similarly, Apple’s Safari Web Browser has also provided their users with a privacy mode option, which can be enabled by choosing the “New Private Window” in the File option on your Mac. In this private window, the websites you visit are not tracked and the open webpages are not saved in iCloud. The items you download are not included in the downloads list, the private browsing windows are not passed onto to your other iOS or Mac devices and the cookies are not saved.
On the Firefox Web Browser, we can choose a “New Private Window” from the hamburger menu    on the top right. This window provides its users with a private browsing provision to erase the browsing information, like passwords, cookies, history and also leaves no trace after you end the session. It also has content blocking, which prevents hidden trackers from collecting your data across multiple websites and slowing down your browsing.
Unfortunately, all these features of private browsing provided by the above mentioned web browsers do not hide your IP address, thereby enabling the search engine to track your browser, your location, your operating system and sometimes, even your physical address. Owing to such data privacy scares in the world, users are opting for more search engines that claim to respect our privacy without storing our data or keeping a track of it.
So yes, your privacy really matters, therefore, we are giving you a list of the best alternative search engines that would help you stay private online.

The DuckDuckGo Search Engine

DuckDuckGo is a search engine which has been creating waves in the search engine industry. The CEO of DuckDuckGo boasted about his company saying if the FBI ever came to them, they have no data to tie it back to us. Their searches are mostly sourced from Yahoo. They also provide a great feature called “bangs”, where you can directly search other sites like Amazon and Wikipedia, simply by stating the query followed by an exclamation mark!
Click here to download DuckDuckGo!

WolframAlpha Search Engine

The WolframAlpha has been around for a long time now. Some people may find it old school, as the front page shows categories and such. However, this search engine has other cool features to pack in its trunk. It can perform interesting tasks like math, financial calculators, health information and all kinds of compelling stuff.
Just like DuckDuckGo, WolframAlpha keeps no track of your searches nor does it gather identifiable data from you. In terms of privacy, this search engine has proven its worth to quite reliable.
Click here to download WolframAlpha!



Startpage Search Engine

Startpage is another search engine which gives utmost priority to your privacy. It has been up and running for a while now, and performs searches through a free proxy server. The one setback about this search engine is that the proxy server slows down the search a bit, but that usually doesn’t cause much annoyance to the user.
Interestingly, Startpage uses Google to make its searches, but it eliminates all the tracking algorithm. Therefore, it maintains the quality of the search we are used to and also doesn’t keep a track on our data.
Click here to download Startpage!




Gibiru Search Engine

Gibiru is relatively lesser known than its counterparts, but provides an option to safeguard your privacy online. Like Startpage, Gibiru also uses Google to perform its search operations, but by ripping out the tracking data before it gets back to you. The founder of Gibiru claims that he developed this search engine to provide the same functionality like Google’s, minus the tracking and monetization.
Gibiru is a fast search engine, hence, it is worth exploring due to its data privacy policies.
Click here to download Gibiru!

Swisscows Search Engine
Amidst all these search engines, Swisscows prefers to use its own AI to provide search results. Technologies like machine learning and semantic search help you deliver the results you are looking for, without depending on search engines like Google or Yahoo. Swisscows has by far gained generally favorable reviews from its users, as they give paramount importance to protect the privacy of their users.
Click here to download Swisscows!

Conclusion:
Due to digitization, there is an obvious risk of sharing your personal data with third-parties while browsing the internet. This is how private search engines benefit the users. As most private search engines do not keep a track on your data, you can be assured that your personal information is not leaked anywhere. When tech giants like Facebook and Google are clawing their ways into our online world by improving their tracking abilities, it is about time we started using search engines which would protect our privacy. It is advisable to go for Startpage or DuckDuckGo, as they are the best known search engines which do not track you, while providing you with an enhanced search experience.

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