I’m in the business of digital advertising which relies on collecting data about users in order to target ads to them. And I’m here to tell you you need to reduce your Google footprint. You’re probably aware that Google keeps tabs on what you’re up to on its devices, apps, and services—but you might not realize just how far its tracking reach extends, into the places you go, the purchases you make, and much more. I’ve got nothing to hide, but quite simply Google doesn’t need my data. They claim this is for the benefit of its users, but the real beneficiary is Google (and their greed for money).

Google Chrome is perhaps the most dangerous browser out there, yet it is by far the most popular. Google Chrome boasts a market share of around 65.5 percent, followed by Safari in a distant second place. Why would you knowingly use the world’s most insidious spyware?

Google makes money from collecting as much data as it can about you and then using that data to deliver highly targeted ads to your screen. The more it knows about you, the more personalized these ads can become. Remember “Minority Report” from way back in 2002? Here’s the clip:

Google’s entire business model is predicated on invading its users’ privacy. Need proof? Check out this article “Can You Trust Chrome with your Data?”, which clearly shows that:

• Google scans emails in Gmail to log all purchases made, even when these have nothing to do with Google. And, there is no privacy setting to prevent this.
• The browser automatically signs users into Chrome whenever you sign into a Google service such as Gmail.
• Chrome scans all your files without permission

A recent privacy experiment by the Washington Post found Chrome ushered more than 11,000 tracker cookies into one user’s browser — in a single week. There is NO compelling reason to use Chrome. None. Stop being taken advantage of and being Google victim. I have never used Chrome as my primary browser because I don’t like Big Brother watching my every move. I also don’t use Gmail except as required for uploading YouTube videos for the same reason.

The main way Google Chrome spies on you is by “cookie tracking.” When you use the web, you send data about your activity and location back to Google. Aside from cookies, Chrome tracks you through a number of identifiers. These include:

• IP address
• Log-in information
• Browser user agents

While Chrome has a “Do Not Track” setting that lets you request that they stop monitoring your every move online, Google says this on its Chrome settings page: “Most websites and web services, including Google’s, don’t change their behavior when they receive a Do Not Track request. Chrome doesn’t provide details of which websites and web services respect Do Not Track requests and how websites interpret them.”

Google is evil with the amount of data they collect on you and you can greatly reduce what you are feeding this monster. Here’s how.

I’ve always been loyal to Firefox, which is a much better alternative browser than Chrome. But now I have found a new winner in the fight for privacy rights: the Brave Browser. My friend Joel Comm turned me onto this and I highly recommend it. It’s fast, secure and PAYS you to see ads. It allows you to reward websites you like. And it’s NOT spying on you. Extensions work great with Brave. And it syncs my bookmarks across desktop and mobile effortlessly.

Here’s my link to support my efforts: https://brave.com/web585

Go download this browser NOW and stop being taken advantage of. Once you have the browser installed on your laptop, do it for your smartphone as well. Then set the default search engine to DuckDuckGo instead of Google. The Brave browser with DuckDuckGo as a search engine is my new default and it should be yours as well.

Search engines such as Google typically record what a user enters in the search bar whether they like it or not. DuckDuckGo has conducted studies in the past that revealed Google search results were being tailored to specific users even when those users were in a private window.

Within private browsing mode, many people expect their searches to not be tracked, and utilizing DuckDuckGo while in Brave Private Windows gives you a greater level of privacy while searching.

Your searches are your business, and you should feel free to search whatever you want, whenever you want. You can easily escape being harvested for data while searching with DuckDuckGo where you are anonymous.

As Edward Snowden said, “Study after study has show that human behavior changes when we know we’re being watched. Under observation, we act less free, which means we effectively are less free.”  It’s time to take back at least a little of your personal freedom.

Here again is the link to the Brave Browser: https://brave.com/web585

GregJameson

Greg Jameson has been writing blog articles on ecommerce and internet marketing for over 10 years. Learn more about Greg at https://webstoresltd.com/about/