DuckDuckGo browser for Mac beta has one trick YouTube won’t like – but you will
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DuckDuckGo’s privacy-focused web browser is now available for download through an open beta for all Mac users. It’s still about keeping your personal information private, but some intriguing new features have also been added.
For the past few months, the company has been steadily working on a desktop version of the DuckDuckGo browser. Originally the desktop browser launched as closed beta in April (opens in new tab), and by the looks of it, everything that was there then is in this new version. This includes things like the “multiple layers of defense against third-party trackers”, according to the announcement (opens in new tab). The new features aim to improve the user experience by removing annoying ads on YouTube in particular. The developers have also added some basic browser features that were missing in the first beta, such as a bookmarks bar and pinned tabs.
You can install the browser on your Mac by going to DuckDuckGo’s website (opens in new tab) where the download should start automatically. Once installed, you can import your bookmarks and passwords from other browsers and password managers. A Windows version that is still in development is currently only available to DuckDuckGo “friends and family”. The company said it expects a private beta for PC in the coming months.
Old and new features
Before we get into the new, let’s briefly discuss the recurring features.
The aforementioned layers of defense protect users from online tracking software, which prevents companies from placing a unique identifier (known as fingerprints) on you as a way to track you around the web. Cookies are also rejected to ensure complete privacy. Returns are the Smarter Encryption tool, which encrypts your Internet connection, and the fire button (opens in new tab). The latter is pretty cool because it completely erases all traces of a browsing session from open tabs, caches, permissions, and back button history. But you also have the option of making a website “fire safe” to keep its data for mass deletion.
One of the new tools is Duck Player, one of our favorites, which specifically stops ads and cookies that users of YouTube videos track. If an ad doesn’t follow people, it will play normally. But it turns out that the vast majority of ads on YouTube videos follow people, so most of them will disappear, according to DuckDuckGo. A company representative told us that Duck Player only works on YouTube and “doesn’t work with other services at this time”.
DuckDuckGo has also tweaked its ad blocker to clear all the whitespace left by ads for a much cleaner look. And in the coming weeks, the browser will add support for Bitwarden, allowing users to integrate the password manager for additional protection.
The company is asking for feedback on how it can improve the browser. You can send the developers your opinion by clicking the three dots below the fire button. There you will find the Send Feedback tool.
Industry stifling
In the announcement, DuckDuckGo briefly mentions how other browsers have weak tracking security. It also refers to recent news about incognito mode on google chrome not being very private. Developers at Google even joke about how bad it is and this raises an interesting question about the integrity of online privacy protections. Are browser developers really that interested in privacy?
DuckDuckGo isn’t the only browser that focuses on privacy. Mozilla Firefox and Opera have brought privacy closer to the center of their development efforts in recent years. But according to recent data, privacy-focused browsers have a hard time getting to grips with users. Mozilla goes so far as to accuse tech giants like Apple and Microsoft of “abusing their privileged position” by making it difficult for users to switch browsers.
Until DuckDuckGo launches on Mac, there are other ways to increase online privacy. Be sure to come and have a look TechRadar’s Best List of Privacy Tools for 2022 to learn what they can do to protect you.