When it comes to the digital world, privacy has become a significant concern these days.
This severe concern has made users shift from Google to DuckDuckGo. The main reason behind this is that Google has an open policy of collecting user data and personal information and selling it to third-party advertisers. These advertisers then display advertisements to users based on the users’ search queries. To avoid tracking issues, a lot of users also use VPNs that offer end-to-end encryption, making users completely anonymous online.
Internet users have started taking this data leak scenario seriously and have stopped using Google as their search engine. It’s not entirely wrong if you think about it. Data leak is a MAJOR issue in the world, with spies and hackers snooping around. If you want to keep your online privacy intact, you must use a secure search engine along with a VPN. Speaking of which, NordVPN is quite a reliable choice. Read our full NordVPN review to learn more.
When did DuckDuckGo come into being?
DuckDuckGo was founded in 2008 by Gabriel Weinberg, taking the rapidly evolving privacy concern into account. Weinberg understood the need for a private search engine and started DuckDuckGo with the tagline “a search engine that doesn’t track you”. It does sound like a direct attack on Google.
DuckDuckGo came into the mainstream as the search engine that prioritizes user privacy and keeps their data completely secure. It does not collect any personal information or sell it to third-party advertisers.
Soon DuckDuckGo will become the most popular privacy-oriented search engine to exist. DuckDuckGo doesn’t allow users to create a profile on the search engine, eliminate tracking emails, or store users’ search queries with their names, location, and IP address.
Are users actively shifting from Google to DuckDuckGo?
It is true. Internet users are rapidly shifting from Google to DuckDuckGo, who are serious about keeping their data safe.
With the rapid increase in data and information leaks, users have started considering masking their identity and trying to stay anonymous over the internet as much as they can. From opting for a VPN to finding the best possible way to prevent personal data collection, users are trying everything to remain safe.
Undoubtedly, Google provides a better search experience than any other search engine. With a user-friendly interface and up-to-date search results, Google proudly stands firm as the biggest search giant in the world. It provides search results according to users’ locale, displays personalized ads, offers Google account features, etc.
But Google offers all its unique features at the cost of users’ privacy. And that is when users have started to hesitate while using Google.
Google vs. DuckDuckGo: Which provides better privacy?
DuckDuckGo boasts itself as the most secure and privacy-concerned search engine in the world. To learn how it differs from Google, let’s go through DuckDuckGo’s privacy features and compare them to Google:
1. Search History:
DuckDuckGo does not store users’ search history. Once you search a query on DuckDuckGo and clear it, you cannot go back to it through your search history. Search history may be a concept for Google, but for DuckDuckGo, it isn’t. This shows that DuckDuckGo does not store a user’s search history by default.
2. Personalized search results:
DuckDuckGo provides no personalized results, and the query results do not differ in any case. This is because DuckDuckGo does not save any personal information of any user. Every user receives a similar result from the same search query. In comparison, Google personalizes results for users based on their locale and previous search results.
3. Tracking personal information:
DuckDuckGo does not store any personal information or tracks users over the internet to acquire their data to sell it to third-party advertisers. At the same time, Google does that, proudly. Google tracks your search habits, stores your details, and sells them to third-party advertisers while you’re using the internet.
4. Personalized ads:
DuckDuckGo displays minimum ads based on the immediate query you search on the search engine. If you search for ‘water bottles,’ it might advertise water bottles to you. While Google tends to use your search habits and target you with ads.
5. Browser extension:
DuckDuckGo offers a browser extension for users to add to Chrome. This way, even if they do not prefer using the DuckDuckGo search engine itself, they can use the extension to stay encrypted while using Google. DuckDuckGo offers this extension to all major browsers like Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and devices like Android and iOS.
6. Features:
Google, being the biggest search giant, believes internet users cannot survive without using it. Google has its own Gmail features, Maps, YouTube, and more. These services are being used worldwide with no hesitations. But, think of it this way. You use Google Maps and think of how Google is tracking you wherever you’re going. Sounds scary, doesn’t it? DuckDuckGo, however, offers the most straightforward search engine possible. Find the location to a place, and it will have nothing to store it onto, no way to identify you.
Conclusion:
If you gravely consider your privacy as a significant concern, then you would want to switch to DuckDuckGo, too; I guarantee you. It’s all your experience vs. your privacy. You don’t get both together, at least for now.
If you still believe that Google is the best search engine around and are hesitant to switch, then you can always set up a reliable VPN for this. A VPN would mask all your data and keep you utterly anonymous over the internet. We recommend NordVPN. With strong encryption, OpenVPN protocols, servers worldwide, a kill switch, and a no-log policy, NordVPN is an efficient way to stay unidentified.
