Whenever we browse the Internet, the question may arise as to whether our personal data is being leaked or not. It is something that can happen at any time. Without realizing it, we could be exposing personal information simply by entering a website or using an application. Now, is anonymity really possible on the net ? We are going to talk about it in this article. We are going to explain some methods that you can use to improve privacy when browsing.
What trail do we leave when sailing
Every time you connect to the Internet you leave some kind of trace . Your equipment, be it mobile, computer or any other, will connect to multiple servers on the network and exchange information. That data will leave a trail, a digital footprint. Sometimes that can be positive, but other times not so much.
A clear example is the public IP address with which we access the Internet. That data will be seen by the web pages to which we connect. They will know where we are, what our language is, the type of device we use… That will be exposed when entering a page, but also when using any social network or program with Internet access.
We can also leave traces of our interests and tastes . Surely on some occasion you have searched for a product, such as buying a new mobile, and from that moment you begin to see related advertising. This is so due to cookies, which are basically small files with information that will record searches we do, pages we visit, etc.
Super cookies are responsible for storing a wide variety of data on browsing, habits, tastes and other types of data. Sometimes they share it between companies to learn more about their customers, their movements and how they can make a profit. This, as you can see, can also compromise your privacy and that certain data can pass from owners.
This is not always a bad thing. A clear example of when it is positive is being able to put things like the weather on Google or any search engine and have it show us where we are. In this way the searches will be better adapted to our location. Therefore, the fact that other websites know more about you or record certain data can be beneficial for the browsing experience.
But of course, that personal data, that information that can be leaked , could also end up in the wrong hands. That data could be controlled by hackers, end up on the Dark Web or used to sell it to third parties and profit from it without our realizing it.
Can we be anonymous on the Internet?
We can answer this question with a yes and a no. In other words, it is possible to have greater privacy on the Internet and become anonymous, but not 100% . Keep in mind that we can always leave a trace. There can always be some small detail that is recorded. Think, for example, of groups of anonymous hackers that are often discovered despite taking all possible measures.
Communications can always become traced. Perhaps the web page you are visiting does not know who you are or where you are, but the operator you use, the VPN from which you connect, etc. may know. Even if you try to optimize all of this to hide data, there can always be a link in the chain that breaks.
Therefore, we can say that 100% anonymity does not exist on the Internet. There are always methods by which they can track a user, analyze their movements, connections, devices they use… We have even seen computer attacks directed at presidents of governments and high security officials. Always, in one way or another, a person can endanger their privacy on the network.
But this does not mean that we cannot do anything to at least get closer to that 100% anonymity. Of course we are going to be able to take into account some recommendations to limit that trace we leave on the Internet
How to maintain privacy
We are going to talk about what methods we can take into account to maintain privacy on the Internet. The goal is to hide information such as IP address or location. You will be able to achieve this with certain programs that you can install both on your computer and on mobile devices.
Use VPN
The first option is to use a VPN. It is the best app to be able to hide IP address and real location. In addition, it helps improve security when connecting to public networks that may be dangerous.
What this type of program does is encrypt the connection . Everything we send will travel in a kind of tunnel, so it will not be exposed in case there is a leak. A potential intermediary will not know where you are or what kind of data you are sending when you open a web page or log in.
You will find both free and paid options. However, the latter are the ones with the most guarantees and with which you will have the least problems. You can use options like ExpressVPN or NordVPN, which work very well. It is important that you look at the security options it has, where the servers are or how many it has to be able to connect.
Proxy
One option with which you can also gain anonymity on the Internet is to browse through proxy servers. In part they act as a VPN, since they are going to be an intermediary between our device and the server that we are going to reach, which can be, for example, a web page or an application that we use.
Here you will also find a large number of options available, but not all of them will work well or be reliable. For this reason, it is always advisable to inform yourself before connecting to any of the options. Of course, you should keep in mind that browsing is usually much slower than if we compare it with a VPN.
Tor Browser
A third option to browse the Internet with greater privacy and anonymity is to use the Tor browser. It is a program based on Mozilla Firefox that works through nodes . This means that when we start a connection it passes through multiple nodes before reaching the destination. In this way our IP address or personal data is hidden and we do not expose anything.
This browser is used to access the Deep Web. It is available for both desktop operating systems as well as mobile devices. It is free and is one more option to VPNs or proxy servers. You will be able to hide your data without major problems. Of course, once again the speed of the Internet is going to slow down a lot.
In short, as you have seen, 100% anonymity on the Internet is not easy and you can always leave some kind of trace. However, you will be able to use some of the options that we have shown to hide certain information and make it more difficult for someone to find out information about you when browsing.
