Why is incognito mode not as safe as we think?

When you do a search on Internet you do not want to leave a trace of, or you enter a page where you do not want your data to be collected, you probably activate the incognito mode that although it offers advantages, it is not as safe as you would think.

It is a common misconception that when you are browsing in incognito mode you are invisible on the web. The reality is that although it allows you to slightly mask your activity, web pages can continue to collect information about the sites you visit, as well as the device and address from which you enter.

Take care of your safety and Learn about the benefits and risks of incognito mode.

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What is incognito mode for?

Let’s start by explaining what incognito mode is for because it does offer some security advantages.

As the UOC (Open University of Catalonia) explains, the main advantage of private browsing is that history is not saved or files with cookies are kept when the tab is closed.

However, the IP is not hidden and, considering that the world spends almost 7 hours a day connected to the Internetaccording to the Digital 2021: Global Overview Report, that means a huge amount of information is generated every day.

So even though more and more people are concerned about the data they leave on the network, it is likely that they are not using the right tools to eliminate or minimize their footprint.

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In this regard, Helena Rifà, professor at the UOC’s Computer Science, Multimedia and Telecommunications Department and director of the university master’s degree in Information Technology and Communications Security, “Even if the incognito mode is used, web pages can continue to collect information about the sites we visit and the device and address from which we navigate, although if we have not logged in on any platform, they will not be able to identify if the user of the session is the same as that of previous records and, therefore, they will not be able to create such a detailed history”.

To understand it better, if you are browsing in incognito mode your online activity will not be recorded on the device but Internet service provider, search engines and other companies may be collecting your information.

This means that if you use incognito browsing at the office or at school, the team in charge of the network or staff members can monitor the activity of our devices online.

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And consider that advertisers will continue to see your activity, so if you search for a product in incognito mode, ads about it will begin to appear.

Though could be a good alternative for when you are using devices that are not yours so that there is no record of your search, but nothing more.

What you can apply the incognito mode for is to enter a different account on the same platform. For example, if you are logged in to an email account and want to open another from the same provider, when you try to open the tab it will not show you the login form, but if you open an incognito tab, it will appear.

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How to surf safely on the internet?

If you want to surf safely on the internet You already know that incognito mode is not enoughbut there are tools that will help you protect your privacy.

The UOC specialist recommends using Tor and VPNs. “Tor is free software that allows users to increase their anonymity online, and VPNs create strong encryption between a user and a website. This prevents internet service providers and other third parties from seeing and collecting our data..

But even using those tools do not stop applying your criteria and do not share your personal information nor enter websites of dubious reputation.

GDA / El Universal / Ariadna Cruz / Mexico

Source: Elcomercio

Callum

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