Now, returning from the vexed (but always interesting) Windows vs. Mac (vs. Others) question, I'd like to recommend a new discovery to users of ALL platforms: Cliqz, a very nice browser by a German company that has just bought out the Ghostery extension (the one that allows you to block EVERYTHING sneaky, underhanded or dubious on ANY website).

Cliqz has many interesting things to recommend it, not least a very nice, clean appearance, seriously quick loading and a massive emphasis on personal privacy/non-tracking, as well as all the other things a modern browser should (but isn't always) be capable of such as pinned tabs, a reader view, anti-phishing, a built-in search engine with fallbacks if required, etc. etc.

It's partially built on the Mozilla Firefox code base, but gives a much cleaner impression than the latter. I haven't tried installing extensions yet (apart from Ghostery, which remains available for all browsers), but will be doing so shortly.

I'm experimenting with Cliqz as my default browser at the moment, and I must say, enjoying it immensely.

Cheers,
Bill

And Cliqz is owned by Hubert Burda Media, the €2.3 billion conglomerate. So, what's the revenue model here? The in-house search engine? Cliqz Offers? Something keeps those "134 team members" fed.

@MadaboutDana wrote

Cliqz, a very nice browser by a German company that has just bought out the Ghostery extension (the one that allows you to block EVERYTHING sneaky, underhanded or dubious on ANY website).

Ha, I didn't spot that!

Well, perhaps they've embarked down the Virtuous Apple path, i.e. User Privacy Is Us, kind of thing.

No doubt we'll see how they monetise it (or not) - in the meantime, I'm encouraged by their stern words about NO extensions unless they've been reviewed in exquisite detail.

However, maybe this is just another attempt to build another Chrome...

In the meantime, however, it's nice to use.

I am hooked with Opera: thanks for the free and fast VPN.

Having recommended Cliqz on Mac260.com, I was advised by another reader to take a look at the traffic from/to Cliqz using "Little Snitch", a brilliant utility that tracks all network activity into/out of your Mac.

And he (and by extension, Paul) was right: Cliqz phones home all the time, despite its purportedly rigorous upholding of privacy principles. Clearly its own servers are exempt from all the apparently impressive privacy settings it offers.

So I'm back to Opera; as Dellu says, it's got its own built-in VPN, and I'd forgotten (doh!) that it also supports Chrome extensions using the amazing "Download Chrome Extensions" extension. So you can make up for the egregious lack of a Reader View by installing an appropriate Chrome extension such as "Just Read" (highly recommended).

Little Snitch is reporting minimal phoning home (apart from the VPN server), whereas Cliqz was producing red flashes every few seconds!

I feel safer already!

Shame about Cliqz, but I'm glad Opera continues (despite its new Chinese ownership) to adhere to its principles.

Cheers,
Bill

I did not go along the Chinese path with Opera and decided to try Vivaldi (By the creator of Opera, I believe) and was hooked. Privacy (I think), speed, etc...
Anyone tried it?

What do you mean by "Chinese path"?

Opera is developed by a Norway company.

OH, I see now what you mean by that: didn't know that a Chinese company has acquired it.

So I’m back to Opera; as Dellu says, it’s got its own built-in VPN, and I’d forgotten (doh!) that it also supports Chrome extensions using the amazing “Download >Chrome Extensions” extension. So you can make up for the egregious lack of a Reader View by installing an appropriate Chrome extension such as “Just Read” (highly recommended).
Little Snitch is reporting minimal phoning home (apart from the VPN server), whereas Cliqz was producing red flashes every few seconds!
I feel safer already!
Shame about Cliqz, but I’m glad Opera continues (despite its new Chinese ownership) to adhere to its principles.

I didn't read Bill's comment. I am sorry. I actaully was wondering why they don't have servers in Norway...surprise, it has been acquired by a Chinese company. Living in Norway, I never heard of this acquisition.


Personally, I enjoyed the VPN; am able to get to the US network with no problems as many youtube videos allow only US viewer. I find the VPN very fast; specially the German server (Geography?).

This might be of interest:

"Apple Just Made Safari the Good Privacy Browser"
https://www.wired.com/story/apple-safari-privacy-wwdc/

https://lifehacker.com/ad-blocking-extension-ghostery-actually-sells-data-to-a-514417864
(6/19/13)
Ghostery is owned by Evidon, a company that collects and provides data to advertising companies. It has a feature called GhostRank that you can check to "support" them. The problem is, Ghostery blocks sites from gathering personal information on you...

https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2018/05/27/ghosterys-goofy-gdpr-gaffe-someones-in-trouble-come-monday/
(5/27/18)
eMails each containing a To: header with a list of 500 of Ghostery's privately registered user email addresses.
-- security/privacy needs competence.

https://disconnect.me/
free. Chrome, Firefox, Opera. also premium version.

https://www.privacytools.io/#browser
The new open source browser "Brave" automatically blocks ads and trackers, making it faster and safer than your current browser. Brave is based on Chromium.
OS: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS.

I will try Brave soon. Anyone used it?
https://www.brave.com/

I wasn't too impressed. It's only up to version 0.22.714, and the stable version hasn't been updated in 3 weeks. It's fast but other browsers, like Firefox, have caught up. It still has some UI glitches.

If you install the right blockers Firefox or Safari might give you a better overall experience. My VPN, PrivateInternetAccess, has options built in for everyting from blocking camera access to location and popups, 3rd party cookies, website referrers and more. Adguard (I bought a $30 lifetime license through StackSocial), also handles ad blocking and tracker-stopping, as well as phishing site warnings. Then there are free plugins you can install in major browsers like uBlock Origin, where you can pick and choose from updated 3rd-party filters containing blocklists based on type (eg porn, cryptocurrency mining protection, killing anti-adblock filters)), geography, and more. (And a bonus for Firefox is that it basically runs all Chrome plugins.)

There are a lot of browsers out there, and I have a bunch installed on my Mac - Cliqz, Brave, Sleipner, Waterfox, Epic - but I really don't use them because, with the right plugins you'll get great speed and privacy from a major, better supported and more frequently updated browser.

Brave’s business model is to block advertising from third parties but substitute advertising from their own partners. Users will be able to pay for content through a micro-payment system based on blockchain tokens. Details are pretty murky, but in April, Dow Jones became the first publisher known to sign on with Brave on a trial basis.

Frost+ is probably the safest browser on Android, at the cost of some convenience. AFAIK, all other "privacy" browsers on all platforms collect some kind of data. The only question is how much and what do they do with it? If you are REALLY paranoid, the only solution is to stay offline altogether.