Data Privacy Week: Web browser privacy review

Welcome to Data Privacy Week!

In case you haven’t heard of it before, the annual event (January 27-31 this year) is an “effort to empower individuals and businesses to respect privacy, safeguard data and enable trust,” according to the National Cybersecurity Alliance. On behalf of the University of Utah, which is a Data Privacy Week Champion, I am excited to tell you about this year’s theme: “Take Control of Your Data.” A great place to start is by assessing the privacy of your “go-to” internet browser.

On average, U.S. residents spend up to 6.5 hours per day using apps, browsers, and other resources. Consider your work or personal browsing: We visit U-managed websites, search for the name of that actor from that show from 1996, or research recipes that use green beans because we have some sitting in the fridge about to go bad. Each inquiry creates a “cookie,” bits of data that websites collect about you and your online activities and store in your browser. Not all cookies are bad — they help websites function, and eliminating or blocking them entirely can cause a frustrating user experience.

While browsing, you aren’t only creating cookies. Any time you interact with a website, ask a sensitive question in a search engine, or submit personal information in an online form, online trackers create a detailed profile about you and your behavior, called “fingerprinting.” A fingerprint is a “list of characteristics that are unique to a single user, their browser, and their particular hardware setup” that can be used for targeted marketing and government surveillance. Fingerprints are more lasting than cookies because they cannot be deleted at the end of a browser session.

Is there any privacy-perfect browser? No. Almost any interaction with the internet creates a data trail, and most default settings are not privacy forward because companies benefit from learning how people use their services.

Even browsers touted as the “best” for data privacy have a negative side because of that anonymity. Consider Tor, which consistently ranks at the top for privacy and IT security, using onion routing to encrypt and mask location data. This facilitates anonymous access to the “dark web,” increasing the risk of meeting malicious actors and accessing illegal content.

Which browser offers the most privacy?

Although Chrome and Microsoft Edge, both Chromium-based, hold the top spots for market share (80% total in December 2024), neither scores high for privacy. Both routinely share data with Google and Microsoft, even in “Incognito” or “InPrivate” modes. They, however, provide automatic updates and easy sign-in to the university’s Microsoft tenant using multifactor authentication.

Firefox ranks highest among most-used browsers (2.74% of the market in December 2024) in privacy and IT security by default. It promises to never sell your personal information; however, updates are not seamless.

Safari (8.48% of the market in December 2024) comes standard with Apple devices. Unfortunately, third-party tracking is not automatically blocked. Although “private browsing” prevents the app from saving your browsing history, it does not stop its collection of some personal information.

Many privacy-conscious browsers offer desktop and mobile apps, as well as search engines for those who want to keep their current browser but don’t want their search history tracked. A couple of browsers that score high marks for privacy include:

• DuckDuckGo consistently ranks at the top for privacy, with a privacy-focused search engine.
• Brave also ranks high for privacy and IT security. By default, Brave blocks advertising, cookies, phishing, and malware, and has built-in settings you can enable to prevent fingerprinting.

Tips: How you can improve privacy in any browser

Just like a favorite ice cream flavor, browser choice is personal but also depends on what is available, meaning sometimes you won’t find anything better than grandma’s balsamic vinegar ice cream. The U has many Microsoft solutions licensed for employee and student use that function well with Edge or Chrome. Firefox, which ranks higher for privacy and IT security, may not support certain U of U Health apps, such as telehealth through MyChart.

Whatever browser you choose, you can limit the information you share on the internet by:

• Updating your default settings to be more private, including deleting cookies and history when you close your browser
• Using browser extensions such as DuckDuckGo or Privacy Badger, which block trackers and ads, giving some protection from fingerprinting
• Using a password manager and stop saving your passwords using your browser’s password saving function
• Scanning websites for the information they collect before deciding whether to use them
• Never posting sensitive personal information online or completing those auto name generators that ask for your first street name and pet’s name, which are answers to common IT security questions that validate your identity

The goal of Data Privacy Week is not to scare you but to educate you. Knowing more about how your data is collected and used empowers you to stay safe online. It’s your data — take control of how much you share online.

 

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