Perhaps you've heard about (or even played) the playground game Duck Duck Goose, way back in the day?
Since most of us have put such childish games behind us, it may be time to take a gander at Duck Duck Go (.com)
Search anonymously. Find instantly.
It just might be a web site Search Engine -- with your name on it.
Scratch that ... with your name NOT on it!
BECAUSE since what you do online, should be nobody's business but your own.
The web may be at times fun and games (and/or a productive financial pursuit), BUT that doesn't mean they should get to treat it like just a kids's game ... to oversee and catalog it to their undisclosed intent, and/or political whims.
BECAUSE most of us are adults; and we don't need some faceless, nameless entities keeping tabs on us ... just to "protect us."
Thanks, but NO Thanks ...
Search the web, without the 'googly' audit trails ... for daring to ask What, Who, When, Where, and WHY?
Duck Duck Go -- Privacy Policy
DuckDuckGo does not collect or share personal information. That is our privacy policy in a nutshell. The rest of this page tries to explain why you should care.
[...]
Why You Should Care -- Search Leakage
At other search engines, when you do a search and then click on a link, your search terms are sent to that site you clicked on (in the HTTP referrer header). We call this sharing of personal information "search leakage."
[...]
In addition, when you visit any site, your computer automatically sends information about it to that site (including your User agent and IP address). This information can often be used to identify you directly.
[...]
Why You Should Care -- Search History
Other search engines save your search history. Usually your searches are saved along with the date and time of the search, some information about your computer (e.g. your IP address, User agent and often a unique identifier stored in a browser cookie), and if you are logged in, your account information (e.g. name and email address).
With only the timestamp and computer information, your searches can often be traced directly to you. With the additional account information, they are associated directly with you.
Also, note that with this information your searches can be tied together. This means someone can see everything you've been searching, not just one isolated search. You can usually find out a lot about a person from their search history.
[...]
The bottom line is if search engines have your information, it could get out, even if they have the best intentions. And this information (your search history) can be pretty personal.
For these reasons, DuckDuckGo takes the approach to not collect any personal information. The decisions of whether and how to comply with law enforcement requests, whether and how to anonymize data, and how to best protect your information from hackers are out of our hands. Your search history is safe with us because it cannot be tied to you in any way.
Duck Duck Go -- Don't Track [Means NO! Tracking. Period.]
An illustrated guide by DuckDuckGo. {worth the extra click}
When you search Google,
Fig. 1
and click on a link,
Fig. 2
your search term is usually sent to that site,
Fig. 3
along with your browser & computer info,
Fig. 4
which can often uniquely identify you.
Fig. 5
That's creepy, but who cares about some random site?
Those sites usually have third-party ads,
Fig. 6
and those third-parties build profiles about you,
Fig. 7
and that's why those ads follow you everywhere.
Fig. 8
That's creepy too, but who cares about some herpes ads?
Your profile can also be sold,
Fig. 9
and potentially show up in unwanted places,
like higher prices and getting insurance.
Fig. 10
But there's more.
Fig. 11
Remember your searches?
Fig. 12
Google also saves them.
Fig. 13
Your saved searches can be legally requested,
and then come back to bite you (happens).
Fig. 14
Or a bad Google employee could go snooping (happens)
Fig. 15
Or Google could get hacked (happens).
Fig. 16
That's why we don't send your searches to other sites.
Fig. 17
Or store any personal information at all.
That's our privacy policy in a nutshell.
Fig. 18
So don't get tracked when searching.
Use DuckDuckGo instead. Add to Browser.
Privacy is just one of many reasons why it's awesome.
Fig. 19 Google tracks you. We don't.
More you might like to know…
Duck Duck Go --
Don't Bubble
Escape your Search Engine's Filter Bubble.
Duck Duck Go --
Fix Tracking
How-to stop getting tracked in your Browser.
Ads following you everywhere? Stop those and worse.
Duck Duck Go --
What is DNT?
What is Do Not Track?
An illustrated guide by DuckDuckGo.
Duck Duck Go --
Search Tips
DuckDuckGo enables you to search 100s of other sites directly.
Just use this dropdown next to the search box. As you use it, your most frequented sites will automatically be displayed at the top.
Or you can type in a command like '!amazon bags', which will take you to Amazon.com and auto-search it for 'bags'.
!bing "Voting Rights"
gives you Search Results on the topic in the Quotes, from Bing. The link to the Recent News on the topic is in the results.
!n "Voting Rights"
gives you Recent News on the topic in the Quotes from Google News
Here's where the DNT comes into play. You can still search Google News -- just without the Google Tracking:
Finally, if you want to prevent sites from knowing you visited them at all, you can use a proxy like Tor. DuckDuckGo actually operates a Tor exit enclave, which means you can get end to end anonymous and encrypted searching using Tor & DDG together.
You can enter !proxy domain into DuckDuckGo as well, and we will route you through a proxy, e.g. !proxy breadpig.com. This feature is part of our !bang syntax. Unfortunately, proxies can also be slow, and free proxies (like the one we use) are funded by arguably excessive advertising.
Because of these drawbacks in HTTPS, POST and proxies we decided to take the redirect approach to combat search leakage. However, we leave the choice up to you. You can deviate from the default on our settings page by toggling the redirect or address bar settings. You can also use our encrypted version.
I found this Firefox plugin from DuckDuckGo particularly interesting; you may too, especially if you have a techie side, to your computer ventures.
Find out Who's tracking YOU in real time, and then approve or disapprove the "trackers," as YOU see fit:
DoNotTrackMe protects your privacy by blocking online tracking. DNTMe blocks ads and cookies with tracking, prevents data collection, and keeps your private browsing what it should be -- private. Stop web tracking of your browsing activity now.
You wouldn't allow Always-On
monitoring video cameras,
in your home 24/7, now would you?
So why do we allow the virtual equivalent of that -- every time we search the web? Through the "standard channels."
Short answer: We Shouldn't. And now with DuckDuckGo.com: We needn't, anymore ...
It just may be time to take a "serious" gander ... at those Other Guys ...
Afterall what do you have to lose, except for a 'cooked goose', or two?
Quack, quack. Tell them "to mind their own damn bee's wax!"
