{"id":12736,"date":"2022-06-09T20:29:37","date_gmt":"2022-06-09T14:59:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/browsertouse.com\/?p=12736"},"modified":"2022-08-02T14:53:02","modified_gmt":"2022-08-02T09:23:02","slug":"enable-duckduckgo-app-tracking-protection-pros-cons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/browsertouse.com\/blog\/12736\/enable-duckduckgo-app-tracking-protection-pros-cons\/","title":{"rendered":"DuckDuckGo App Tracking Protection: What is it? How to Enable? Pros, Cons"},"content":{"rendered":"

Apart from being a privacy-focused search<\/a> engine, DuckDuckGo<\/a> has also developed standalone mobile browser apps for iOS and Android. It comes with a built-in tracker and privacy protection. But today, we’re here to explore perhaps the most unique feature on any web browser – the DuckDuckGo app tracking protection. We’ll explore what it does and whether it helps increase your privacy.<\/p>\n

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Related <\/strong>| 4 Ways to Do Private Browsing on Android & iPhone<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/span>How Mobile Apps Track You?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Apart from tracking activity on web browsers, there are instances where companies perform tracking on apps you use. These tracking mechanisms are designed to be hidden and continue to track even when you aren’t using the app<\/strong>. These trackers also track you in real-time, which opens up a gate to monitor many of your activities.<\/p>\n

Once your data is tracked, it will be sent to third-party companies<\/strong>. These companies will use the data to send you personalized ads<\/strong>. Social media services will also use the data to build more detailed and personalized profiles for you.  Some might even sell your data to other companies too.<\/p>\n

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Image: DuckDuckGo<\/p><\/div>\n

Here’s what we know from official information provided by DuckDuckGo. They found hidden trackers in over 96% of the popular free apps<\/strong> they tested. Among those, 87% sent data to Google, and 68% sent the data to Facebook.<\/p>\n

Apple, as we all know, claims to prioritize user privacy. They recently introduced a feature called App Tracking Transparency. In this feature, users are asked in each app whether they want to allow third-party app tracking or not. With no such feature being present on Android – this was DuckDuckGo’s inspiration behind building the app tracking prevention for Android.<\/p>\n

<\/span>What is DuckDuckGo App Tracking Prevention?<\/span><\/h2>\n

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Tracking protection<\/a> has always been quite simple on PC browsers<\/a>, as you can just install an extension like uBlock, or Privacy Badger. The tricky part has always been finding a comparable and reliable tool for Android devices. This is where DuckDuckGo fills a void.<\/p>\n

What this feature does, is protect Android users by opting out of trackers present in applications. This lets users safely use apps without worrying about data being tracked and sent to multiple sources.<\/p>\n

Trackers are blocked in applications, running both in the background and foreground. DuckDuckGo app tracking prevention is a privacy feature built within the DuckDuckGo browser app and not a separate app.<\/p>\n

<\/span>How Does DuckDuckGo App Tracking Protection Work?<\/span><\/h2>\n

\"DuckDuckGo<\/p>\n

The app tracking prevention blocks app trackers from large corporations trying to grab your data as you use apps. DuckDuckGo uses the VPN functionality on Android devices to ensure protection. The network traffic coming from apps is filtered using a VPN. Here’s how it works.<\/p>\n

DuckDuckGo firstly asks you to connect to a “VPN.” The local VPN will monitor the incoming traffic and identify and filter out any tracking requests. Once these requests are filtered, the trackers are now blocked.<\/p>\n

DuckDuckGo has identified a list of app tracking requests, and it always goes through this list to ensure every possible tracker is blocked. This also works in the background. DuckDuckGo also mentioned that it continuously works to identify and protect new trackers so that users get the most up-to-date protection.<\/p>\n

<\/span>But is this feature a VPN? <\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Although it connects to a VPN, it technically isn’t. Or at least not what is expected when you connect to a VPN<\/a>. Typically, VPNs involve rerouting the network to another external server. In this case, the VPN connection is localized so that the network is routed through the backend of the app tracking protection tool, and trackers can be blocked.<\/p>\n

<\/span>How to Enable DuckDuckGo App Tracking Protection Without Invite<\/span><\/h2>\n

Initially, the feature was rolled out on an invite-basis. However, you can now enable and use App Tracking Protection in your DuckDuckGo Android app directly, as shown below.<\/p>\n

Here’s how you can enable this feature on Android Devices.<\/p>\n

Step 1: <\/strong>Download the DuckDuckGo<\/strong><\/a> browser app from Play Store.<\/p>\n

Step 2: <\/strong>Once you install the app, open it up, and click on the three dots menu <\/strong>icon > Settings<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Step 3: <\/strong>Now, select App Tracking Protection<\/strong>.<\/p>\n