DuckDuckGo or Google is the best search tool for you

Google is one of the largest companies in the world. Although it has expanded into many other areas of life, Google is still best known as a search engine. To maintain a free service, Google records an amazing amount of data about users' online habits. That data is used to display ads, Google's main source of income.

If you're looking for a privacy-focused alternative to the Google search engine, DuckDuckGo might be the right choice for you.

What is DuckDuckGo?

DuckDuckGo or Google is the best search tool for you Picture 1

DuckDuckGo claims it is a search engine that does not track users.

Most search engines collect and store search data. Google even links that data to your account. Recorded information is used to personalize search results and show you targeted ads.

But DuckDuckGo (DDG) does not track you and does not personalize your search results.

This site has grown steadily since its inception, from an average of 79,000 daily searches in 2010, to 38.8 million searches per day and 31 billion total searches as of June. 2019.

Meanwhile, the growth of 'rival' browsers such as Firefox and Apple Safari have shown signs of 'cooling down'. DuckDuckGo has also partnered with many Linux operating systems and has native apps for both Android and iOS.

Users of TOR browser are displayed with DuckDuckGo search results by default. DDG focuses on quality of search results by quantity (results come from more than 400 sources).

DDG even allows you to search directly for third-party websites and even other search providers.

Who owns DuckDuckGo?

DuckDuckGo or Google is the best search tool for you Picture 2

DuckDuckGo was first launched in 2008 by founder and CEO, Gabriel Weinberg. DuckDuckGo is still owned and operated by Weinberg, belonging to DuckDuckGo Inc. private company. The company currently has more than 65 employees working hard to continue developing DDG.

When it comes to privacy, it is necessary to know a little about the people who run the companies you entrust your data to. Before creating DDG, Gabriel Weinberg developed one of the first social networks, Names Database.

After that, he sold the business for nearly 10 million dollars in 2006. This amount was used to finance the development of DDG in the first phase. Later, Weinberg became co-author of Traction, a book about startup growth.

How does DuckDuckGo make money?

Weinberg's initial cash helped maintain the company for several years. In 2011, investment company Union Square Ventures invested in DDG. According to Crunchbase, this initial funding has earned DDG an additional $ 3 million. To date, outside fundraising has reached $ 13 million.

However, venture capital (venture capital) does not make a company profitable. To create a financially sustainable business model, DDG is forced to display ads.

However, unlike other search engines, advertising is not based on targeted data. Instead, ads are based solely on keywords in the user's search. All DDG ads, provided by Yahoo, part of the Yahoo search alliance - Microsoft.

Although DDG does not provide any personal data to either of these companies, the fact that the two tech giants have many privacy questions can make you uncomfortable. That's why DDG allows you to go to install and disable ads.

This is one of the most important points in the battle between DuckDuckGo and Google.

DuckDuckGo is also part of the Amazon and eBay affiliate program. If you click through one of the pages from search and purchase results, DDG will receive a small percentage of sales. However, no personal information is transferred to either Amazon or eBay.

Can you trust DuckDuckGo?

The development in recent years has shown that you cannot trust your data into the hands of many technology companies. From Facebook selling user data to third parties to Timehop ​​losing personal information of more than 21 million accounts, there are many data leak scandals that can put you at risk.

So, the question of why you should trust DuckDuckGo is so natural. The company's corporate privacy focus and admirable business model is a great starting point, but there are many more reasons to trust DDG. If you wonder if DuckDuckGo is safe, these points can reassure you.

Privacy Policy

DuckDuckGo's well-written privacy policy provides details about the small amount of information this tool will collect.

The highlight is that DuckDuckGo does not store a unique IP address or User-Agent identity and will only set cookies to save page settings.

DuckDuckGo claims to comply with legal requirements by court order. However, DuckDuckGo will not be able to provide anything useful because the user's personal information is not collected.

Open source

Along with being built with free and open source software (FOSS), DDG has turned many parts of its software into open source. Many website designs, mobile applications, browser extensions, whitelist and instant answers are available on the page:

 https://github.com/duckduckgo 

Although the main core is still proprietary, leaving most other parts of the site open source means anyone can view the code.

Contribute to privacy

Like many companies, DDG also raises part of its income for good reasons. DuckDuckGo specifically selects organizations that share their views on improving the standards of trust when online.

Each year DuckDuckGo selects a new group of organizations, even reaching out to Reddit to find suggestions. To date, DuckDuckGo has donated $ 1.3 million to selected organizations. The Donations page (reference link: https://duckduckgo.com/donations) lists each contribution they have made (sorted by year).

In addition to search function

In January 2018, DuckDuckGo went beyond the search and release of a set of tools, helping users maintain their privacy on the Internet. DuckDuckGo has revamped browser and mobile app extensions to include protection against tracking, encryption and quick access to private search.

The update has also added a page-level privacy rating from A to F, so you can assess the level of website privacy. Many features are found in browser extensions and mobile apps that aim to stop monitoring and protecting user privacy. In other words, DuckDuckGo's privacy-focused applications are intended to keep you safe online.

DuckDuckGo compared to Google

In addition to the search function, Google operates some of the most used software on the web, including Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, etc. Google's access to a large amount of your data means a connection. Results can be clearly personalized and the search page will combine them all in one place.

DuckDuckGo does not hold any personal data, and therefore it stands out in many different ways. It is one of the many ways that DuckDuckGo protects your personal information online.

This privacy-focused environment is almost exactly the opposite of Google's highly targeted environment. There are no personalized ads, no personal search results and no filter bubbles. Depending on your point of view, this may be one of the best or worst features of DDG. For those with a strong emphasis on privacy, not being followed can be a huge plus.

However, DuckDuckGo has another interesting feature. That is Bangs.

Bangs allows you to search third party websites directly from DuckDuckGo. Suppose you want to search for quantrimang.com. Google will allow you to do a site search by entering the website: quantrimang.com. Using the bangs of DDG, type! Qtm followed by your search term.

Moreover, finding a website through this Bangs feature will take you directly to the website, instead of the search engine results.

DuckDuckGo application and extension

At this point, most users have dived into operating systems, browsers and applications. The fact that Google appears widely on almost any device, screen and browser means that DuckDuckGo also needs to be available wherever you need it.

That's why DDG has evolved from a web-only platform to providing mobile applications and browser extensions, with many privacy-focused features.

DuckDuckGo on the browser

DuckDuckGo or Google is the best search tool for you Picture 3

DuckDuckGo is a search provider on most major browsers, but users of Chrome, Firefox, Opera and Safari can also install the DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials extension. Extensions block hidden ad trackers, forcing websites to switch to HTTPS if possible and give you quick access to DDG search.

Download DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials for Chrome | Firefox | Opera | Safari (Free).

DuckDuckGo mobile application

DuckDuckGo or Google is the best search tool for you Picture 4

DuckDuckGo or Google is the best search tool for you Picture 5

DuckDuckGo or Google is the best search tool for you Picture 6

DuckDuckGo mobile apps on Android and iOS are built on the features available in the browser extension. DDG privacy tracking, encryption and search features, all integrated in the minimalist mobile DuckDuckGo browser.

The fire icon on the browser allows you to delete all browsing data and close all active tabs.

There is a basic bookmark feature to access your favorite websites, besides a lot of other features. For most people, this feature cannot replace the browser. However, it is very convenient when you need to look for something sensitive.

Download DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser for Android | iOS (Free).

Is DuckDuckGo better than Google?

Google becomes 'dominant' in the search engine world, by providing you with personalized searches. Google has built extremely useful applications and services, gathering more user data to improve search results. However, in the face of some privacy scandals in recent years, users are becoming more cautious with their data.

DuckDuckGo shows us that user privacy and usefulness are not two factors that cancel each other out. So is there an absolute winner in the war between DuckDuckGo and Google?

DuckDuckGo is attractive to those who value privacy, but it is important that it is not comprehensive. There are a variety of useful features and some DuckDuckGo search tips do not work on Google.