3 Best Ways to Hide Browsing History from ISP in 2024

Last updated: October 28, 2024 Reading time: 6 minutes
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ISP has started retaining users’ data because of the Mandatory Data Retention Law, which raises concerns regarding privacy. Therefore, you should try to hide your online activity by encrpting it. Below are the tools you can use to hide your browsing history from your ISP:

  1. Reliable VPN – Fast and encrypts all the Internet
  2. Tor Browser – Encrypts the online activity but is kinda slow
  3. Private Search Engine – Provides private search environment

ISP tracking is a way for companies to collect data about what their customers are doing online. This data can be used to sell ads, target users with specific content, or even track and store user behavior. While some people may not mind this type of tracking, others may find it invasive or worrying. Thankfully, you can hide your browsing history and activities from your ISP if you want to keep them secret.

Want to know how to do it? Read along to learn the process step-by-step.

What data ISP can see

After all of this, FCC Privacy Rules, ISP can now sell your data to any advertising company they want. Well, the following are things they collect from you and why they do so.

  • Browsing history and activities: They will sell your browsing history to advertising companies to target you with relevant ads like Google or Facebook already do.
  • Personal details: They can now store and provide personal information such as email addresses, phone numbers, payment data, security numbers, and other logs.
  • Internet devices: Will give you a device already configured with their spying software.
  • Cookies injection: Can inject hidden and untraceable cookies into the browser and retrieve data.

This is a risky thing and can breach your privacy.

How to hide browsing history from ISP

There are many tools and combinations of toolsets you can use to hide your digital fingerprinting and hide your identity while browsing. But here are the top 3 best ways (based on our tests) to hide your activities from ISP.

  1. VPN – By using a VPN service
  2. Tor browser – By browsing through the Tor network
  3. Private search engines – By searching through private server-based engines

1. Use a VPN

Top 7 Weakest Points of VPN

VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a technology that helps hide your browsing history and activities from your ISP. When you connect to a VPN, your traffic is routed through a secure server before it reaches the internet. This means that your ISP cannot see which websites you are visiting or what you are doing online.

VPNs are a great way to keep your browsing history and activities private from your ISP and to protect your privacy online. They can hide your IP address, which can help protect your identity and prevent tracking. VPNs can also be used to access blocked websites and content.

If you are looking for a way to mask your browsing history and activities from your ISP, VPN is a great place to start.

NordVPN: It’s a top-ranked VPN provider with 6,100+ servers, robust security features, works with Netflix, Torrenting, Tor, and ISP throttling – 30-day money-back guarantee www.nordvpn.com

ExpressVPN: It has 3,000 servers worldwide and works excellently with Torrenting, Netflix, and special features for Tor. Offers a 30-day money-back guarantee www.expressvpn.com

Surfhark: Excellent VPN for Netflix and torrenting, can bypass ISP throttling, and has great privacy features. Boasts 3,200+ servers and comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee www.surfshark.com

2. Tor Browser

Tor Browser Privacy Setting

Tor Browser is a web browser that uses the Tor network to hide your browsing history and activities from your ISP. When you connect to the Tor network, your traffic is routed through a series of secure servers before it reaches the internet. This means that your ISP cannot see which websites you are visiting or what you are doing online.

Besides, the Onion Browser can be used to hide your IP address, which can help protect your identity and prevent tracking. It can also be used to access blocked websites and content.

However, the only problem you will encounter is the slow speed as it routes your traffic through multiple nodes, which takes time.

3. Private search engines

15 Best Private Search Engines That Don't Track And Monitor Your Activities

Private search engines also help in hiding your browsing history and online activities from your Internet Service Provider. When you use a private search engine, your traffic is not routed through any servers. This means that your ISP cannot see which websites you are visiting or what you are doing online.

There are many different private search engines that you can use to mask your browsing history and activities from your ISP. Some of the most popular secure search engines include DuckDuckGo, StartPage, and Ixquick.

How to hide browser history from Wi-Fi owner

If you are using a public wifi network, there is a good chance that the owner of the network can see your browsing history and activities. This is because public wifi networks are not encrypted, meaning the network owner can see everything you do online.

There are a few ways to hide your browsing history and activities from a public wifi network owner. As we discussed above, one way is to use a VPN. When you connect to a VPN, your traffic is routed through a secure server before it reaches the internet. This means that the network owner cannot see which websites you are visiting or what you are doing online.

Another way to hide your activities from a public Wi-Fi network owner is to hide your IP address. You can hide your IP address by using a private search engine. Your traffic is not routed through any servers when using a private search engine, which means that the network owner cannot see which websites you are visiting or what you are doing online.

FAQs

This process could be helpful to a certain extent. It restricts the browser from developing and maintaining your online activity, search history, and cookie information. Due to such restrictions, it might be difficult for ISPs to track you, but they can still access your activities.
No, you can’t remove browsing history from ISP. The provider does have their servers to collect data. You can delete your search history, but you can not delete data from the ISP’s end. 
Each country has its regulations, but ISPs typically keep your browsing history for 6 months to 2 years. Some may also sell your browsing history to third parties, so it’s always a good idea to hide from ISPs if you want to ensure that your personal information stays private and secure.

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About the Author

Rebecca James is an IT consultant with forward thinking approach toward developing IT infrastructures of SMEs. She writes to engage with individuals and raise awareness of digital security, privacy, and better IT infrastructure.

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