9 Ways to Make Google Chrome Safer and More Private

Improving privacy and security on Google Chrome involves several adjustments to its default settings. Users are advised to sign out of their Google accounts to prevent excessive data access and disable the Chrome sign-in feature, allowing the use of Google services without syncing data across devices. Additionally, switching the default search engine to DuckDuckGo can further enhance privacy, with the option to use Google for specific searches using a shortcut.

Adopting a dedicated password manager like BitWarden or 1Password is recommended over Chrome’s built-in password storage for better security and less data sharing with Google. Users should also review Chrome’s security settings, opting for Standard protection instead of Enhanced protection to minimize data sent to Google, and enable secure connections to load HTTPS versions of websites.

Privacy settings can be tightened by controlling site access to location, camera, and microphone, and by periodically clearing browsing history and site data. Blocking third-party cookies can reduce tracking, with an option to limit this to Incognito mode if needed. Autocomplete settings can be altered to limit the data collected by Google, and privacy can be further bolstered through the use of extensions like uBlock Origin and NoScript to block trackers and unsafe scripts.

For those seeking even greater privacy, considering alternative browsers such as Firefox or privacy-focused options like Brave is suggested, as they offer a balance between privacy, performance, and customization.