Of course, you know that when surfing the Internet, the browser remembers and saves a lot of different information on the disk: browsing history, site cache, etc. This is done for the convenience of the user, but can sometimes bring some discomfort: anyone who sits at the computer will be able to see your information. If you do not want this, use the special mode in browsers, which will be discussed below.

The mode of operation of the browser, during which there are no traces of the user on the computer, is commonly called private or incognito. By enabling this option, the user, of course, will not be able to become completely anonymous on the Web, however, on local computer the following information will not be stored:

• Logins and passwords;
• Data entered into web forms;
• Browsing history;
• Cookies;
• Web page cache;
• Downloads list.

Google Chrome

This mode is called "Incognito" in Chrome. You can open it from the main menu or using the keys "Ctrl + Shift + N".

Mozilla Firefox

Similarly, a private window opens in Firefox. We press the icon of the main menu, in it we select the corresponding icon (or the keys "Ctrl + Shift + P").

Opera

The steps to open a private window are exactly the same as in Chrome.

Private browsing does not save your browsing information such as passwords, cookies, and history, leaving no trace after the session ends. Firefox also has Content blockingAdvanced Tracking Protection, which prevents hidden trackers from collecting your data across numerous sites and slowing down your browsing.

How do I open a new private window?

There are two ways to open a new private window:

Open a new Private Window from the Firefox menu

The Private Browsing home page will open in a new window.

Advice: A purple mask will be displayed at the top of the Private Browsing windows.

What is not saved in Private Browsing Mode?

• Visited pages: Pages will not be added to the list of visited websites in the History menu, in the History of the Library window, or in the address bar drop-down list.
• Form and search data A: Nothing you enter into various forms on web pages or in the Search Bar will be saved for autofill forms.

• Download List: After exiting Private Browsing Mode, files downloaded during Private Browsing Mode will not be displayed in the Downloads window.
• Cookies: Cookies store information about the websites you visit, such as site preferences, registration status, and data used by plugins such as Adobe Flash. Cookies may also be used by third parties to track your navigation between websites. Read How do I enable Do Not Track? for more tracking information. Cookies in private windows are held temporarily in memory, separate from regular window cookies, and are reset when your private session ends (after the last private window is closed).
• Cached web content and Offline web content and user data: Temporary Internet files, cached files, or files saved by websites for offline use will not be saved to your computer.

Can I set Firefox to always use Private Browsing?

Firefox is set to remember history by default, but you can change this setting in the Firefox Privacy Settings:

Attention: When Firefox is installed on won't remember history, you won't see a purple mask at the top of every window, even if you're actually in private browsing mode. To restore normal browsing, go to Settings Privacy and Security and install Firefox on will remember history.

To hide your activity from an employer or provider, you will need more serious solutions, for example: anonymizers, special software, proxy plugins, and so on. Incognito mode in Firefox can offer:

• Do not save history.
• Disable cookies.
• Hide activity in search engines.
• Delete temporary files.

In this case, all downloads and bookmarks will be saved. display user activity on a particular site. The browsing history saves all the sites that have been opened in the browser over the past six months and often becomes an accusatory factor in some kind of “crime”. All in all, incognito is a very useful feature for those with little secrets, but far from being all-powerful. This will definitely not help international terrorists and intelligence agents.

How to enable incognito mode in Firefox

The first step is to open the menu, which is hidden under the icon in the form of three horizontal sticks in the upper right corner. Here we press the button with the image of the Venetian mask - " Open private window».

The second way is somewhat easier. All you have to do is right-click on any link. Select "Open link in a new private window" from the context menu.

How to check if it works: try opening a site in incognito mode that requires user authorization, for example: email, profile in social network, account on the forum or other. The page will start on the start window, where you need to enter a login and password, which says that working with cookies is turned off, the privacy mode is working.

Why can an employer or provider track me?

It's simple - to hide on the network from such surveillance, you need to mask your IP. Chameleon, Tor, and VPNs are among the many services that allow you to completely hide activity, and if you try hard, you can bypass the traffic! Remarkably, most anonymizers are absolutely free. In some cases, you will need to install software on a PC, for the rest it is enough to open a similar online service in Mozilla, enter the desired address and use it without fear of surveillance.

Today, almost all web browsers have a private browsing mode - a special privacy feature that allows you to browse sites without the browser remembering your surfing history.

Private Browsing in Firefox, in addition to its main purpose, blocks services that ask for access to your data: requests to search engines, page views, file downloads, etc.

How to enable private mode in Firefox

To enable "Private Browsing" in Firefox, click the sandwich icon , behind which the main menu is hidden, in the upper right corner, and then select " Private Window" or use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+SHIFT+P.


A new browser window will open where your privacy will be protected.

Always start Firefox in private mode

By default, Firefox remembers your surfing history, which you can always look at later in the "Journal". However, changing Firefox settings You can turn on Private Browsing to stop your browser from remembering all the sites you visit.


Click on the main menu and select the “Settings” icon, in the new window, click on the “Privacy” link and change the history setting to “ won't remember history". Activating this option is equivalent to the private browsing feature, only enabled permanently.

Automatic launch of private browsing for certain sites

Firefox itself does not provide the ability to automatically start private browsing for certain sites, so we will use an add-on Auto Private. The extension does not have a visual interface with which you can interact directly, so setting up the add-on will be quite difficult.


After the module is installed, open new tab and type in your browser's address bar " about:config” without quotes, followed by pressing Enter. You will be redirected to the service page hidden settings. Here in the line "Search" enter " extensions.autoprivate.domains", right-click on the found line and select " Edit" in the menu:


In the new dialog box, write the domains you want to open privately, separated by semicolons.


The add-on supports filters and the prohibition of providing private browsing for certain sites. See the Auto Private download page for more information.

How to disable private browsing in Firefox?

What if you want to check your child's browsing history, for example, but you can't trace all the pages because they were opened in private mode?


To disable the private browsing feature, you can use the Disable Private Browsing Plus add-on.

Install this extension and restart your browser. Disable Private Browsing disables access to “Private Browsing” using hotkeys Ctrl+Shift+P, as well as through the menu " Private window».

To begin with, what is incognito mode in a browser and why is it needed. Incognito mode is a mode in which the browser does not save any information about its use. History of visits, downloads, entered passwords, cookies and other data that can be used to determine what you did on the Internet are not saved at all or are deleted after closing the window.

What will give you incognito mode:

• search queries are not saved in the browser
• addresses of visited sites are not saved in browser history
• entered passwords are not saved
• the files you download remain on the computer, but they are not in the download history
• the ability to log in to a site where you are already logged in under a different login
• if you are authorized on any site in normal mode, in incognito mode this authorization is not taken into account

What will NOT give you incognito mode:

• incognito mode does not hide your online activities
• your ISP "sees" which sites you have visited
• if you use a work computer, then the sites you visit will be visible to the employer
• the sites themselves “see” that you visited them
• if you log in to any site (Vkontakte, classmates, etc.) under your account, it will be noticeable. Becoming "invisible" by simply turning on incognito mode will not work

How to enable incognito mode in the browser

In all modern and more or less popular browsers, incognito mode is enabled by key combinations ctrl+shift+n (⌘ + Shift + n on Mac OS). The exception is firefox, in which private browsing is enabled using a key combination ctrl+shift+p. It is also possible to enter this mode through the browser menu, oh, this is for each of them below.

Incognito mode in chrome

To enter incognito mode in google browser chrome, use a keyboard shortcut Or press a button "Configuration and management google chrome» - three dots "New incognito window":

After that, a new window with a dark design will open. You will receive a notification that the browser is in incognito mode, and an icon will appear in the upper left corner:

Opera incognito mode

To enter incognito mode in opera browser, use the keyboard shortcut ctrl+shift+n (⌘ + Shift + n on Mac OS). Or click the button "Menu" in the top left corner of the browser. Then select "Create Private Window":

After that, a new one will open with the inscription "Private Browsing":

Incognito mode in Yandex browser

To enter incognito mode in Yandex browser, use the key combination ctrl+shift+n (⌘ + Shift + n on Mac OS). Or click the button "Yandex Browser Settings" in the top right corner of the browser. Then select "Incognito mode":

After that, a new window with a dark design will open, in the upper right corner there will be a dark glasses icon:

incognito mode in firefox

To enter incognito mode in the Mozilla firefox browser, use the keyboard shortcut ctrl+shift+p (⌘ + Shift + p on Mac OS). Or click the button "Open menu" in the top right corner of the browser. Then select "Private Window":

Then a new window will open. An icon in the form of a mask on a purple background will be displayed in the upper right corner:

In addition, in firefox browser built-in tracking protection, which is enabled in incognito mode. This feature does not collect detailed information about you. Tracking systems such as Yandex. Metrica, Goggle Analytics, all kinds of attendance counters and more. This does not mean that the site owner will not know anything about you. It only means that he learns much less than he could know.