this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2025
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privacy

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Google is tracking you even when you use DuckDuckGo [privacy respecting search engines, via trackers on the websites that you visit] (www.simpleanalytics.com)
submitted 1 week ago* (last edited 6 days ago) by cm0002@lemmy.world to c/privacy@lemmy.ca
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[–] MyTurtleSwimsUpsideDown@fedia.io 58 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Wow! What a headline: It makes it sound like DDG was compromised by Google.

spoilerIt wasn’t.

DDG protects you from Google (knowing your search history, and which links you clicked from each search) while you are on the DDG website. Of course it doesn’t protect you from trackers once you leave DDG. For that you need other cookie and tracking blockers like PrivacyBadger, uBlockOrigin, and Firefox’s Enhanced Tracking Protection.

It is definitely an important point that up to 40% of US sites send user data to google, but that is not something unique to DDG. A more accurate headline would be “Google is tracking you even if you never use it.”

[–] who@feddit.org 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Indeed. uBlock Origin is a must for applying filter lists, IMHO.

I also use uMatrix to block all scripts and XMLHttpRequests by default, as well as images and everything else from third parties. It makes it easy to see from where a site is trying pull scripts to run on my computer, and to enable them on a per-domain basis when I want to. (uBlock Origin technically has this functionality, but uMatrix has a much better interface for it, and still works despite no longer being developed.)

Google domains are banned at my place.

[–] PhilipTheBucket@ponder.cat 56 points 1 week ago (2 children)

* Because the site DDG sent you to is often partnered with Google

[–] Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe 16 points 1 week ago (1 children)

And why I use UBlock origin to block most stuff by default. Yea, some sites don't work initially, just tells me this site sucks

[–] PhilipTheBucket@ponder.cat 7 points 1 week ago

Yeah. I pretty much use Tor and Librewolf exclusively. Whenever I use something else, it's like the internet has become a parody put together by someone who's making a point about intrusive advertising.

[–] Geometrinen_Gepardi@sopuli.xyz 11 points 1 week ago

Figured that has to be the answer.

[–] XLE@piefed.social 24 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I think this comment said it best:

This is an obvious, thinly-veiled advertisement for a company's services. It's widely known that ad companies track you everywhere by many mechanisms. This is why we use ad blockers of all sorts. This has nothing to do with DuckDuckGo, it's merely used as a vehicle to get clicks.

And a supplemental note from the DDG team themselves :

This title is highly misleading, implying that Google tracks DuckDuckGo searches directly, which isn’t true... please change it to be more accurate about Google analytics and other Google trackers on websites you may visit.

(copied from my response to the same post in a different community)

[–] otter@lemmy.ca 3 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

@cm0002@lemmy.world

This post is being reported, would you consider updating the title to reflect these details? Maybe:

Google is tracking you even when you use [privacy respecting search engines, through trackers on the websites that you visit]

[–] cm0002@lemmy.world 3 points 6 days ago

Sure thing, edited

[–] Lag@lemmy.world 10 points 1 week ago

I like how uBlock blocks redirected links from things like Google Maps which reminds me to just type in the website. I hope it can be turned up for this too.

[–] leastaction@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 week ago

A good alternative to Youtube is Freetube, a Youtube client that prevents tracking. https://freetubeapp.io/

[–] BCsven@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 week ago

Use things like Newpipe on mobile for YouTube, use stract.com for good old fashioned links based on content, not adwords