The 'Do Not Track' Feature Is Practically Useless: Take These Measures to Stop Websites From Tracking You!

If you want to stop companies from tracking what you do online, you may want to enable your browser's "Do Not Track" option. However, while it doesn't really hurt, it doesn't do much good either. So here's what you need to do to stop websites from tracking you instead of relying on Do Not Track.

What is the "Do Not Track" feature?

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Do Not Track is a browser option that you can turn on/off in your settings. When you turn it on, your computer sends a special HTTP header to the websites you visit. This header states that you do not want the website to use certain technologies to track what you do, such as tracking cookies.

Why does turning on "Do Not Track" not help much?

You might be wondering: What exactly stops websites from tracking you, regardless of whether you enable Do Not Track or not? Unfortunately, this option isn't backed by any laws, so websites aren't legally obligated to honor your request.

So, enabling Do Not Track essentially works on trust. If a website owner wants to respect your wishes, they can't track your use of the site. However, if they know they can make money from your activity, don't expect them to turn a blind eye just because you asked.

How to stop websites from tracking you

So if Do Not Track doesn't work, what does? Luckily, there are plenty of ways you can take matters into your own hands and stop websites from using tracking cookies, regardless of whether they respect your wishes or not.

Use an anti-tracking extension

If a website isn't respecting your privacy, you can force it to do so using an extension. There are many add-ons you can use with your browser to automatically detect and block any attempts to track what you're doing.

Check out our guides to the best privacy extensions for Chrome and Firefox for some ideas.

Use an anti-tracking browser

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Don't stop at extensions. Why not use a browser built specifically to prevent sites from tracking you in the first place? That way, you can trust that the browser's developers have your privacy in mind.

If you're interested, check out our picks for the safest browsers on Windows, or test your current browser with a tracking checker.

Use a privacy-respecting search engine

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Search engines are a goldmine of user data. After all, they're where we pour all our questions, curiosities, fears, and insecurities. Luckily, you don't have to give up your search engine if you want to stop websites from tracking you.

If you want to search the web without companies storing your data, check out the best private search engines that respect user data. The most popular option is DuckDuckGo, which doesn't store data about what people are searching for.

Clear cache and cookies

Finally, you can manually clear your cache and cookies after you're done browsing. All browsers have a way to clear your data whenever you want, but you can go a step further and have your browser clear it automatically. Clearing your data means that companies will have minimal access to your profile.

If you don't want companies to build profiles about you, the best way to do that is to prevent websites from using tracking technology to find out what you're doing.

Good luck!

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Samuel Daniel

Update 09 December 2024